TALLEST; HIGHEST; BIGGEST; ETC IN INDIA

Tallest Building—World One,a super-tall residential skyscraper under construction in Mumbai, will be the tallest building of India, once completed. It will be 222.5 metres high.

Tallest Structure: Two further masts of INS Kattabomman, the VLF-transmission facility of the Indian Navy, at Vijayanarayanam near Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, are 471 metres tall and the tallest structures in India. They are also the tallest military structure in the world.

Longest Road Bridge—Dr. Bhupen Hazarika Setu, also referred to as the Dhola–Sadiya Bridge is a beam bridge connecting the north-east States of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The bridge spans the Lohit River, a major tributary of the Brahmaputra River and is the first permanent road connection between the northern Assam and eastern Arunachal Pradesh. At 9.15 kilometres in length, it is the longest bridge in India.

Longest Sea-bridge: Bandra-Worli Sea-link (5.6 km)

Highest Award for gallantry—Param Vir Chakra.

Highest civilian Award—Bharat Ratna.

Longest River in India—The Ganga.

Largest Lake—Wular lake, Jammu & Kashmir.

Highest Peak—Karakoram-2 or K2 (8,611 metres). (Highest peak in the world is Mount Everest which is in Nepal.)

Largest City (population wise)—Mumbai.

Highest Waterfall—Gersoppa waterfall (292 metres high) near Mysore.

Largest State—Rajasthan.

Most thickly populated State—Uttar Pradesh.

Highest rainfall—Cherrapunji (930 cm per annum).

State with largest area under forests—Assam.

Largest Delta—Sunderbans Delta.

Longest cantilever span bridge—Howrah bridge.

Longest road tunnel: Between Chenani in Udhampur with Nashri in Ramban district, in J&K. The 9.2 km tunnel is part of the ambitious 286 km-long four-laning of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway

Biggest cave temple—Ellora.

Longest platform—Kharagpur (West Bengal) 833 metres in length. (It is also the longest railway station in the world.)

Longest Road—Grand Trunk Road.

Longest National highway: NH7 from Varanasi to Kanyakumari.

Longest Railway Route—Dibrugarh-Kanyakumari by Vivek Express.

Biggest Mosque—Jama Masjid at Delhi.

Highest Gateway—Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri (53.6 metres high).

Tallest Statue—Statue of Gomateshwar (17 metres high in Karnataka).

Largest Dome—Gol Gumbaz at Bijapur.

Largest Zoo—Zoological Garden at Alipur (Kolkata).

Largest Museum—India Museum at Kolkata.

Highest Dam—Tehri Dam (260 metres high).

Largest Desert—Thar.

Largest District—Ladakh.

India’s Fastest Train—Gatimaan Express, between Delhi and Agra.

Highest Filling Station—Leh, Ladakh (3658 m) operated by Indian Oil.

Highest Bridge—near Khardung La, Ladakh at 5602 m. This Bailey Bridge has been built by Indian Army.

Aberdeen: Known as Granite City is famous for Britain’s largest granite-exporting industry. It is in Scotland.

Abu Simbal: (Egypt) famous ancient temple cut out of rock by Rameses II.

Al-Aqsa: is a mosque in Jerusalem said to be the third holiest to the Muslims after Mecca and Madina.

Alaska: The territory of the Alaska became a United States possession in 1867, when the American Government purchased it from Russia.

Alexandria: city and sea-port of Egypt founded by Alexander the Great.

Algiers: is the capital town and port of Algeria in North Africa.

Angkor Vat: a ruined city in Cambodia where beautiful specimens of ancient Indian art and culture are found.

Arakan Yoma: is the extension of Himalayas located in Myanmar.

Aswan: (Egypt) on the Nile. Aswan Dam, which is one of the biggest dams in the world, is situated here.

Atacama: Cold desert in South America.

Attock: town in West Pakistan between Peshawar and Islamabad known for oil wells.

Ava: (Myanmar) on the Irrawadi river; famous for many pagodas now in ruins.

Baiknour: is the Russian spaceship launching station (cosmodrome), situated in the hot dusty steppes of Kazakhstan, about 1,984 km from Moscow.

Bangkok: capital of Thailand.

Bastille: a castle or fortress in Paris built in 14th century and used as State Prison for political offenders. Demolished on 14 July 1789 at the beginning of the revolution by the French.

Bethlehem: Palestine; about 9 km South of Jerusalem; birth-place of Jesus and King David; Church of Nativity.

Bibliotheca Alexandria: One of the first and most celebrated centres of learning in human history—the Library of Alexandria in Egypt—has been re-opened by Egypt. Its roots stretch back to more than 2000 years.

Big Ben: (London) is the name given to the clock on the tower of the building of British Parliament.

Bogor Palace: summer palace of the President of Indonesia, situated nearly 64 km south of Djakarta; now being used by the government for meetings and conferences.

Borobodur: is the most important monument, the great Buddhist shrine in Central Java (Indonesia), erected between 750 and 850 AD under the Sailendra dynasty. Built around a natural hillock, the stupa is surrounded by eleven square concentric terraces, the lowest with a length of 131 yards, all adorned with beautifully sculptured panels, depicting in relief scenes of Buddhist legend.

Brandenburg Gate: It was the main gate which separated the Eastern and Western Sectors of Berlin before unification of Germany.

Brussels: capital of Belgium, silk and cotton industries.

Buckingham Palace: in London; residence of the Royal family of England.

Buenos Aires: capital of Argentina on the river La Plata; fine buildings.

Burj Khalifa: known as Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration, is a skyscraper in Dubai, UAE; is the tallest man-made structure in the world, at 829.8 m.

Cairo: capital of Egypt.

Caldor Hall: Caldor Hall, named after the world famed American sculptor, Alexander Stirling Caldor, is a famous Art Gallery in Philadelphia (USA). The sculptural productions of Alexander Caldor in addition to those of other famous artists have found a befitting abode in Caldor Hall.

Caracas: is the capital of Venezuela. Here, the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Seas was held in June-August 1974.

Caspian Sea: 1216 km long and 432 km wide; occupies an area of 170,000 square miles between Asia and Europe. It is the largest inland sea in the world and is 26 metres below sea-level.

Cenotaph: (London) a monument in White Hall, London, unveiled by George V in 1920 to commemorate those who gave their lives during World War I.

Chequers: in the Chiltern Hills near Princes Risborough, Bucks, in England is the country-seat of the Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom.

Chicago: second city in population and third in area situated at the mouth of Chicago river at the south-west corner of lake Michigan in Illinois (USA). The city is cut by the Chicago river into three parts, joined by bridges and tunnels. It is known for the University of Chicago. There are many fine parks, playgrounds and bathing beaches. It is the greatest Railway centre in the USA. It is also the biggest meat-packing centre.

Colombo: capital, chief town and port of Sri Lanka. It has much strategic importance being situated on a great ocean highway from Europe to the Far East.

Colorado: USA—famous for gold, silver, copper and coal.

Colosseum of Rome: one of the most magnificent ruins of the world and name of the amphitheatre in Rome.

Corsica: an island in the Mediterranean where Napoleon was born.

Cotopaxi: is situated in Equador—a Republic on the Pacific coast of South America—Cotopaxi is the loftiest active volcano in the world with a height of 5,959 metres.

Downing Street: No. 10 Downing Street is the official residence of the Prime Minister of England in London.

Dundee: centre of linen and jute manufacture in Scotland.

Durban: South Africa; Fort of Natal.

Eiffel Tower: in Paris (France) 300 m high and built at a cost of £ 200,000. It is now being used as a Meteorological Wireless Station.

El-Alamin: Egypt; scene of great Allied victory in Second World War.

Elba, St: an island in the Mediterranean Sea. Napoleon was exiled for the first time in 1814 here.

Empire State Building: (USA) is one of the loftiest buildings in the world; height about 365 metres; it has 102 storeys.

Etna, Mount: is a great volcanic mountain dominating the island of Sicily.

Eton: England; famous for public school founded by Henry VI.

Fleet Street: A street in London running from Temple Bar eastwards to Ludgate Circus. It is named after the River Fleet. The area (with adjoining streets) houses the offices and printing establishments of many of the leading British newspapers and press agencies.

Flushing Meadows: on Long Island, New York (USA) famous as UN meeting place.

Gibraltar: British fortress and naval base on west end of the Mediterranean (extreme south of Spain); key to the Mediterranean.

Grand Canyon: is a huge gorge 8 to 24 km wide in Arizona USA produced by Colorado river sinking in places to a depth of 1829 metres.

Great Wall of China: 2400 km long wall; its construction was started by Chinese King Emperor Shih Hwang.

Greenwich: England; famous for its Hospital, Observatory and RN College. Longitude conventionally calculated Greenwich meridian either east or west.

Hague, The: (The Netherlands); Seat of International Court of Justice; Art galleries.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon: one of the seven wonders of the world; planted near the Euphrates in 603 BC.

Harappa: Montgomery District (Pakistan); excavation of pre-historic buildings of pre-Aryan days of about 3500 BC.

Harley Street: a street in London known for expert medical practitioners.

Havana: capital of Cuba, cigar-manufacturing centre.

Hiroshima: in Central Honshu (Japan); close to the “Island of Light’’ with the famous Shinto temples; first city destroyed by atom bomb in the Second World War.

Hollywood: California (USA); centre of film industry.

Hong Kong: is called Pearl of the Orient. The British government gave possession of Hong Kong to China on 1 July 1997.

Houston: a city of Texas (USA). It is USA’s Space Communication Centre.

Hyde Park: (London); famous place for public meetings.

Independence Hall: (USA) where in 1776 the Constitution of USA was declared.

Jakarta: capital of Indonesia formerly known as Batavia.

Jerusalem: ancient city and capital of Palestine known as the ‘Holy City’. Christ was crucified here. Jerusalem remained under Islamic rule through conquest by Turks in 1517, till the British occupied it in 1917. In 1948 it was divided between the new republic of Israel and Jordan. In 1956, Israel proclaimed the western part of the city, which they held, as capital. It is a holy city for three faiths: Christian, Jew and Moslem. In June 1967, the Israeli forces, engaged in war with Arab countries, occupied the whole of Jerusalem city.

Jodrell Bank: near Manchester (UK), is the locale of the world famous radio telescope. It has played an important role in international space research.

Kimberly: situated in the east of the Kalahari Desert; biggest diamond market in the world.

Kremlin: large fortified citadel in Moscow, now the headquarters of Russian government. The Kremlin, originally built in 1156 by Yuri (George) Dolgoruki, prince of Suzdal became the centre around which Moscow has grown.

Kuala Lumpur: capital of Malaysia.

Leaning Tower: (Pisa, Italy) 55 metres high.

Leeds: England; cotton and chemical industries.

Louvre, The: (France) one of the old royal palaces of Paris turned into a museum by Napoleon I and enriched by him with the plunder of many foreign art gallaries. It houses Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece “La Giconda’’.

Lumbini: is the birthplace of the Buddha. It is in Nepal.

Manila: capital of Philippines; famous port.

Mecca: the holiest city of the Mohammedan world in Arabia, where the Prophet was born. It stands in the desert, about 72 km east of Jidda. In the centre of Mecca is the Great Mosque, in the courtyard of which is the Kaaba. It is a place of pilgrimage and Muslims from all parts of the world visit it for Hajj every year.

Merdeca Palace: Official residence of the President of Indonesia in Jakarta.

Mexico City: It is the capital of the federal republic of Mexico, South of N. America.

Mohenjodaro: is in Sind (Pakistan); site of excavation revealing preAryan Indus Valley civilization.

Monaco: a principality on the border of France. It is notorious for gambling.

Monte Carlo: It is one of the three sections in the principality of Monaco, situated on the Riviera about 14 km east of Nice, France. The place is one of Europe’s most luxurious resorts and famous for Monte Carlo car rally and other festive and sporting events. Monaco Grand Prix motor race is also held through the streets of Monte Carlo.

Mount Blanc: highest mountain peak in Europe. It is in the Alps on the confines of Italy and France; longest road tunnel in the world.

Nagasaki: in Japan; second city destroyed by atom bomb in World War II.

Nairobi: capital of Kenya in East Africa; game hunting centre.

Nankana Sahib: birthplace of Guru Nanak. It is in the Sheikhupura district now in Pakistan.

New York: Financial capital of USA, is situated on the river Hudson.

Notre Dam: is a bay in Newfoundland, Canada.

Nuremberg: is a city of Bavaria in Germany noted for its ancient buildings and a castle. It suffered about 75 per cent devastation in the Second World War. During Hitler’s regime, it was the scene of the annual rallies of the Nazi party. In 1945-46 the trial of Major German war criminals was held here.

Ottawa: capital of the Dominion of Canada; situated on the Ottawa river.

Panama: is a strip of land 75 km long by 16 km wide extending 8 km on either side of Panama Canal administered by the USA.

Pearl Harbour: in Hawaii Island (USA); Naval Base; scene of Japanese attack in World War II.

Pentagon: in Washington. It houses many Government offices of the War Department of the USA

Philadelphia: (USA) place where Americans framed their constitution and declared their independence on 4th July, 1776.

Phnom Penh: is the capital of Cambodia.

Pisa: a town in Italy famous for the leaning tower of Pisa one of the wonders of the world.

Pittsburgh: It is the second city of Pennsylvania (USA) famous for Pennsylvania University which rises to a height of 163 metres and has 47 storeys. It is a great port producing steel, coal, natural gas and petroleum.

Point Nemo (Latin for “no one”) is one of the most remote location on Earth. It’s a spot in the South Pacific between Australia, New Zealand and South America that’s farthest from any land. Another name it has is the Oceanic Pole of Inaccessibility, and it’s also where NASA’s spacecraft go to die.

Pompeii: ruined city in Italy; Destroyed AD 79 by volcanic eruption.

Potala: once Dalai Lama’s palace, in Lhasa, capital of Tibet.

Pyramids of Egypt: are vast stone or brick-built structures on the west bank of the Nile. They date back to about 300 BC. The largest is called the Great Pyramid which is 146 metres high and is one of the seven wonders of the world. Three lakh men were employed for 20 years to build it. These Pyramids have inner chambers and subterranean entrances, built by pharaohs as royal tombs.

Red Square: It is a famous open space in Moscow linked with the Kremlin by three gates, used for political demonstrations and processions. Lenin’s mausoleum is in the Red Square.

Rome: capital of Italy; on the River Tiber; one of the most famous cities of the world also known as eternal city.

Ruhr: Germany; famous for rich coalfields and heavy iron industry.

Sargossa Sea: The areas of stagnant waters formed in the centre of the ocean currents are often referred to as ‘Sargossa Sea’. It is without a coastline.

Scotland Yard: The Metropolitan Police headquarters in London from which the force is administered. CID headquarters.

Sheffield: industrial city in England; famous for cutlery and steel goods.

Sphinx: in Greek mythology, is a winged creature with a woman’s head and a lion’s body. The great Sphinx at Giza is in the form of a lion with the head of a pharaoh built in 2900 BC.

St Helena: British Island in South Atlantic; place of Napoleon’s imprisonment in 1815-21.

St Petersburg: Also known as “Venice of the North”, the tricentennial of Russia’s graceful city was celebrated in May 2003. Earlier known as Leningrad, it is one of the most beautiful cities of Europe and is the second largest city of Russia.

Taxila: in Pakistan; site of excavation; old seat of Buddhist culture and famous for ancient Taxila University. It was a great centre of trade and commerce during the Gupta period (320-647 AD).

Tel Aviv: magnificent city in Palestine built by the Jews. Capital of Israel.

Texas: largest State of USA; largest cotton producing region in the world.

Trafalgar: Cape Trafalgar is famous for the naval battle fought between the British led by Admiral Nelson and an allied naval force of France and Spain in 1895. Admiral Nelson won the battle though he was himself killed in action.

Vatican: The Papal State of Italy; an independent territory; the palace of Pope in Rome. It includes the Church of St Peter.

Vendenberg: (California) is the 110-milion-dollar US Air Base of the Strategic Air Command named after the late Air Force Chief of Staff, General Hoyt Vendenberg.

Venezuela: republic in South America on Caribbean coast; is one of the largest oil producing centres of the world.

Verkoyansk: is situated in North East Siberia (Russia), Verkoyansk is the coldest place in the world. Its temperature goes down to 94° below zero.

Vesuvius: famous active volcano of southern Italy.

Victoria Falls: on the River Zambesi, Zambia Central Africa; these Falls, the greatest in the world, are 1700 metres wide.

Wailing Wall: It is the western wall of a Jewish temple which had been built in Jerusalem 200 years before Christ. The temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70. The Wailing Wall is the only extant sign of the temple and has been worshipped by the Jews for nearly 2000 years now.

Wall Street: a street in New York; centre of US Banking and Finance.

Waterloo: Belgium; famous for the battle of Waterloo which marked the end of Napoleon’s power.

Wembley: is the famous sports stadium near London where all important sports are held.

Westminster Abbey: (London) where many British sovereigns, persons of eminence and unknown warriors are lying buried.

White Hall: London; Government Offices.

White House: is the official residence of the President of the USA. It is located at 1600, Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC.

Wimbledon: in London; famous for Lawn Tennis Court.

World Trade Centre: The World Trade Centre (WTC), in New York, USA, was bombed by terrorists on 11 September 2001, using two commercial aircraft. More than 6000 people were killed in the attack. WTC took seven years to build and was completed in 1973 at a cost of $ 750 million. The two 110-storey towers briefly served as the world’s tallest buildings until the Sears Tower in Chicago surpassed it in 1973 at 433 metres.

Yellow Sea: sea between northern China and Korea.

Yellowstone: is a Lake in the Yellowstone National Park of USA.

Yukon: in North America is 3,200 km long river Canada-Alaska; flows N.W. and W. into Bering Strait. It is navigable for 1920 km.

Zambesi: River in S.E. Africa. It flows east to Mozambique channel, Indian Ocean.

Adam’s Bridge: very nearly joined to India between two points viz, Mannar Peninsula and Dhanushkodi by a line of sand banks and rocks called ‘Adam’s Bridge’.

Aga Khan Palace: in Pune where Mahatma Gandhi was kept interned with his wife Kasturba Gandhi. Kasturba died in this palace.

Agra: (Uttar Pradesh) the Taj Mahal.

Ahmedabad: is situated on the river Sabarmati.

Ajanta Caves: near Aurangabad (Maharashtra) are famous for wonderful Buddhist cave temples richly ornamented with sculpture and carved with paintings of exceptional skill. Dating from about 150 BC to AD 650, it is work of Vakatkas and early Chalukya kings.

Alang: situated in the Gulf of Khambata (Gujarat), is well-known for ship-breaking industry.

Aliabet: is the site of India’s first off-shore oil well—nearly 45 km from Bhavnagar in Gujarat. On 19 March 1970, the Prime Minister of India set a 500-tonne rig in motion to inaugurate “Operation Leap Frog’’ at Aliabet.

Alipur: Suburb of Kolkata; Government mint.

Allahabad: also called Prayag is a city in Uttar Pradesh situated at the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna. Kumbha Mela (religious fair of the Hindus) is held here.

Almora: 132 km from Kathgodam in Uttarkhand is the main town in Kumaon Hills. It is said to have been founded by Raja Kalyan Chand about 400 years ago.

Alwaye: (Kerala); Monazite factory.

Amarkot: in Rajasthan, is the birth-place of Akbar. Akbar was born here in 1542.

Amarnath: situated at a height of about 4054 metres in Jammu & Kashmir. A place of pilgrimage for the Hindus.

Amritsar: (Punjab) on the north-west border of India; Golden Temple; Jallianwala Bagh tragedy on 13 April 1919. The plot of land at Amritsar containing a pool was granted by Akbar to Guru Ramdas (1574-1581). Golden Temple, the famous Sikhs temple was constructed on this plot.

Anand: between Ahmedabad and Baroda in Gujarat. Famus for milk dairy—Amul.

Anand Bhawan: Residence of Pt Moti Lal Nehru in Allahabad, dedicated to the Indian National Congress.

Angarpota: Angarpota and Dahagram were two enclaves given by India to Bangladesh in exchange for Berubari enclave under the Indo-Bangladesh Border Demarcation Agreement signed on 16 May 1974.

Atal Setu: It is the first cable-stayed bridge of north India in Kathua district of J&K, built on river Ravi. It provides close connectivity between the three States of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.

Aurangabad: one of the important towns of Maharashtra; tomb of Emperor Aurangzeb and of his wife. Ellora and Ajanta Caves are reached from here.

Auroville: is an international township being constructed in Pudducherry with the help of UNESCO.

Avadi: near Chennai in Tamil Nadu is known for the government-owned Heavy Vehicles Factory. ‘Vijayanta’ and ‘Ajit’ tanks are manufactured here.

Ayodhya: is situated on the river Gogra (called Sarayu in ancient times).

Badrinath: Himalayas; place of pilgrimage for the Hindus near Gangotry Glacier.

Bardoli: (Gujarat); famous for non-payment of taxes campaign by peasants of Bardoli started by late Sardar Patel in 1928.

Baroda: capital of the former Baroda State is now one of the main towns of Gujarat; known for Laxmi Vilas Palace which is one of the most beautiful palaces in India.

Belur Math: is a monastery near Kolkata in West Bengal founded by Swami Vivekananda. There is a beautiful temple dedicated to Shri Rama Krishna Parmhans.

Bhakra: known for Bhakra dam built across the Sutlej river in a natural gorge just before the river enters the plains 80 km upstream Ropar in Punjab State.

Bharatpur: town in Rajasthan; famous for its historic fort.

Bhilai: (Chattisgarh), famous for one of the gigantic steel plants set up here with the help of Russian engineers and credit.

Bhubaneswar: the capital of Odisha, famous for Lingaraja Temple.

Bijapur: town in Karnataka; capital of the old Adilshahi Sultans of Bijapur. Known for Gol Gumbaz (the tomb of Mohammad Adil Shah and the second largest dome in the world) also called the Whispering Gallery. The town is rich with the remains of palaces, mosques and tombs.

Bokaro: in Jharkhand; known for the fourth steel plant set up in public sector.

Brihadeeswara Temple: at Tanjore. It was built by Raja Raja-I of Chola dynasty.

Buddh-Gaya: is situated 10 km south of Gaya in Bihar on the western bank of the Lilajan river and connected by two metalled roads. It is famous as the place where Buddha got enlightenment. There are modern monasteries, rest houses, and museum.

Buland Darwaza: Gateway of Fatehpur Sikri built by Akbar. This is the highest and the greatest gateway in India. It was erected to commemorate Akbar’s conquest of Gujarat.

Bundi: in Rajasthan is well known for jungles nearby providing plenty of tiger shooting.

Cape Comorin: also called Kanya Kumari in Tamil Nadu is the southernmost tip of Indian peninsula where the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal meet the Indian Ocean. It gives a beautiful view of sun-set and sun-rise.

Chandernagore: (West Bengal) on the river Hooghly, previously a French settlement, now merged with the Indian Union.

Chandigarh: Union Territory and joint capital of the Punjab and Haryana States; beautiful buildings on modern style, situated at the foot of the Himalayas; designed by French Architect Le Corbusier.

Chennai: capital of Tamil Nadu is the third largest city in India. Known for Fort St George; Light-house; St Thomas Mount; Integral Coach Factory; Adyar (the headquarters of the Theosophical Society).

Cherrapunji: in Meghalaya; the place of heaviest rainfall.

Chidambaram: is a town in South Arcot district, Tamil Nadu, 245 km by rail from Chennai City. It is famous for its great Hindu Siva temple, dedicated to Natraja or Siva in his aspect of “cosmic dance’’. It is also the seat of Annamalai University founded in 1929. The name of the town comes from Tamil chit plus ambalam, “the atmosphere of wisdom’’.

Chilka: a lake on the East Coast of India in Odisha on the KolkataChennai line, about 88 km from Bhubaneswar by rail. It is an excellent place for fishing and duck shooting. Naval Boys’ training centre. Chilka region is an inland drainage area. Chilka lake is endangered by prawn forming.

Chittaranjan: in West Bengal; famous for Locomotive Works; railways engines are manufactured here.

Chittorgarh: ancient capital and fortress of Udaipur; known for Tower of Victory and Mira Bai’s Temple.

Corbett Park: in Uttarkhand is a National Park named after Jim Corbett, a famous hunter and writer of Shikar stories.

Dalal Street: in Mumbai is associated with the stock-exchange market.

Dakshineswar: about 8 km from Kolkata where Swami Vivekananda was initiated into religious life by Shri Ramakrishna Paramhansa.

Dandi: Famous for Salt Satyagraha (Dandi March) by Mahatma Gandhi in 1930.

Dayalbagh: near Agra; known for Dayalbagh Industrial Institute; shoe manufacture. Religious and cultural seat of a section of the Hindus.

Dhanbad: (Jharkhand) famous for coal mines and the Indian School of Mines. National Fuel Research Institute is situated here.

Dhirubhai Ambani City: The 132-acre complex, known earlier as knowledge city, is the largest commercial complex of India.

Dibrugarh: town in Assam; terminus of rail and river communications along the Brahmaputra from Kolkata.

Digboi: (Assam) known for rich oil-fields.

Dilwara Temples: near Mount Abu (Rajasthan) are five Hindu Temples constructed here between 11th and 13th century AD.

Dindigul: in Tamil Nadu; famous for cigars and tobacco.

Durgapur: in West Bengal is known for a gigantic steel plant set up here with the help of British Engineers.

Eagle’s Nest: is the name given to the historic fort at Raigarh in the Kolaba district of Maharashtra where, 300 years ago, Chhatarpati Shivaji, the great warrior-statesman, was crowned.

Elephanta: an Island in Mumbai harbour—famous for rock-cut temples.

Ellora and Ajanta: in Aurangabad (Maharashtra) famous for wonderful Buddhist cave temples richly ornamented with sculpture and carved with paintings of exceptional skill.

Ernakulam: in Kerala is famous for its backwaters.

Faridabad: an industrial township in Haryana State. It is situated about 29 km from Delhi.

Fatehpur Sikri: 32 km from Agra; city built by Emperor Akbar in 1569 now deserted.

Ferozabad: (Uttar Pradesh) famous for glass bangles industry.

Garhmukteswar: a town in Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh. A big fair of Hindus is held every year at this place.

Gateway of India: in Mumbai harbour erected in 1911 on George V’s visit to India.

Gaya: (Bihar) the place where Lord Buddha got enlightenment; famous for pilgrimage.

Gazipur: (Uttar Pradesh) known for the government opium factory.

Gersoppa (Jog) Falls: in the river Sharavati are in Mysore.

Golconda: a ruined city of India, about 11 km west of Hyderabad; formerly there was a diamond mine here.

Golden Temple: in Amritsar (Punjab). Sacred to the Sikhs. The plot of land containing a pool was granted by Akbar to Guru Ramdas, the fourth Guru of Sikhs, who built the temple.

Gol Gumbaz: largest Dome in Bijapur (Karnataka).

Gomateswara: (Karnataka) famous for the 2000-year-old statue of Jain Sage carved out of a single stone.

Guntur: in Andhra Pradesh; known for cotton manufacture.

Gwalior: in Madhya Pradesh is famous for its fort, Tansen’s Tomb, Rani Laxmi Bai’s Chhatri.

Haldia: in West Bengal is known for a big oil refinery being set up in public sector.

Haldighati: a pass in Rajasthan where in 1576, the brave Rana Pratap faced the Mughal forces headed by Man Singh and Asaf Khan.

Hampi: site of ruins of Vijayanagar—ancient capital of Vijayanagar Empire. It is in Karnataka.

Hardwar: on the Ganga—where the Ganga leaves the mountains. It is one of the most sacred places of pilgrimage for the Hindus.

Hazrat Bal: is a mosque in Srinagar in which relics of Prophet Mohammad are kept.

Hoshangabad: is situated on river Narmada.

Howrah Bridge: a cantilever span bridge constructed over the river Hooghly connecting Howrah Railway Station with Kolkata.

Hyderabad-Secunderabad: the twin-city is the capital of Andhra Pradesh. It is centrally situated for all-India communications. It stands on the river Musi. Known for Char Minar; Osmania University; Salarjung Museum one of the richest and most varied collections in Asia.

Imphal: north-east frontier town and capital of Manipur is well-known for its Manipuri dance and handloom industry.

India Gate: A memorial in New Delhi facing the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Itanagar: is the capital of Arunachal Pradesh.

Jabalpur: in Madhya Pradesh is known for Marble Rocks and Dhunva Dhar (water-falls). It is situated on the river Narbada.

Jadugoda: in Bihar is famous for Uranium Ore Mill.

Jaipur: capital of Rajasthan called “pink city” is famous for pottery, brassware, sculpture, ivory and scandal-wood work and jewellery. Famous for Maharaja’s Palace; Jai Singh’s Observatory; Amber (ancient capital); Hawa Mahal. The city was founded by Sawai Jai Singh.

Jalandhar: one of the largest towns of the Punjab; Surgical and Sports goods industry.

Jallianwala Bagh: a garden in Amritsar; scene of massacre of innocent Indians by the British on 13 April 1919.

Jama Masjid: (Delhi) built by Shah Jehan; India’s biggest mosque.

Jamshedpur: (Jharkhand) centre of iron and steel industry; Tata Iron and Steel Factory is located here.

Jantar Mantar: in Delhi, is an observatory constructed in 1724 during the days of Maharaja Jai Singh II of Amber.

Jealgora: in Bihar is known for Central Fuel Research Institute.

Jhansi: (Uttar Pradesh) occupies a key position as a railway junction; famous of the heroic part played by its queen Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi in the war of Indian Independence, 1857.

Jharia: in Jharkhand is famous for coal-mining.

Jog Falls: also called Gersoppa Falls in Karnataka are one of the highest water-falls in the world. These falls are formed by the river Sharavati which takes a big leap down a steep rock from a height of 253 metres.

Juma Masjid, Mandu: is in Madhya Pradesh. It depicts a synthesis of Hindu and Muslim styles in architecture.

Junagadh: in Gujarat, situated below the Girnar Hill is one of the most ancient cities in India. The famous Gir Forest—the only place in Asia where lions are found—is in Junagadh. The temples on the Girnar Hill are noted for their delicate painting and architecture.

Kailasha Temple: rock-out temple in Ellora caves.

Kalpakkam: near Chennai in Tamil Nadu is known for Madras Atomic Power Project (MAPP).

Kanchi or Conjeevaram: near Chennai was the capital of the ancient Pallavas; famous for ancient temples.

Kanchenjunga: is the world’s third highest mountain peak (height 28,208 ft.). It stands in the Himalayas on the borders between Nepal and Sikkim, 58 km north-west of Darjeeling, from where it is conspicuous.

Kanheri: about 32 km from Mumbai is famous for its Buddhist caves dating back to the 1st century AD.

Kanpur: on the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh, is a big industrial centre; sugar mills, cotton mills, woollen mills, soap, iron, leather, tent and hosiery factories; known as the city of factories.

Kanya Kumari: in Tamil Nadu; famous temple (the Virgin Goddess) situated at Cape Comorin on the extreme southern tip of India where the Bay of Bengal, Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean meet; a picturesque spot. Vivekananda Rock Memorial being built here.

Kapilvastu: a small ancient kingdom in the north of India; associated with Mahatma Buddh.

Karnal: a town in Haryana, known for National Dairy Research Institute.

Karwar: Situated in North Kanara district of Karnataka, it is India’s biggest naval base.

Kasauli: in Himachal Pradesh is a hill station known for Pasteur Institute.

Katni: Madhya Pradesh; cement factory.

Kavaratti: is the headquarters of Lakshadweep, a Union Territory of India, formerly known as Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi Islands.

Kaziranga: is a Game Sanctuary in Assam. It is the centre of the great Indian one-horned rhinos.

Khadakvasla: near Pune; National Defence Academy is situated here.

Khajuraho: in Madhya Pradesh is famous for its group of highly ornate mediaeval Hindu temples.

Khetri: in Rajasthan; copper manufacture.

Kirkee: near Pune; Institute of Armament Studies; the first of its kind in India; Meteorological Observatory.

Kodaikanal: is a town in Tamil Nadu famous for its Observatory for the study of Solar Physics.

Koderma: (Jharkhand) is a mica mining centre.

Kolar: in Karnataka, gold mining centre.

Kolkata: famous as the commercial capital of India. It is the capital of West Bengal. It has a port of immense river traffic. Known for Victoria Memorial, Belyedere House (where the British Viceroys stayed when on a visit to Kolkata) now the National Library, Dakshineshwar Temple, Dum Dum airport, Diamond Harbour.

Konarak: small town 16 km north of Puri (Odisha); famous for its Black Pagoda; Sun Temple.

Korba: in Chhattisgarh is the site of a huge public sector aluminium plant.

Kovalam: is a sea-beach about 16 km from Thiruvanthapuram in Kerala.

Koyali: in Maharashtra, is known for Petro-Chemical complex.

Kumbalgarh fort: The wall of this fort is the second largest continuous wall in the world after the Great Wall of China. It extends over 38 km. The fort is located 82 km from Udaipur and is a UNESCO world heritage site.

Kurukshetra: Ancient town near Ambala (Haryana) where the great battle Mahabharata was fought between the Kurus and Pandvas; Kurukshetra University is located here.

Kutab Minar: in Delhi (88 m high) is one of the master-pieces of Indian architecture and art. It is the biggest minaret in the world. Completed by Altamash in 1232.

Leh: capital of Ladakh; once a caravan centre for Central Asia. It is situated on the river Indus.

Lothal: ancient town, situated on the sea-plain of former Saurashtra, 720 km south-east of Mohenjo-Daro. The excavation made here represent the Indus-Valley culture.

Lucknow: capital of Uttar Pradesh is known as the city of Gardens. It has many places of historical interest—Imambara; Tomb of Wajid Ali Shah; Chattar Manzil; Dilkusha Palace; Alambagh; Sikander Bagh; Havelock’s Tomb.

Ludhiana: Industrial town of Punjab; known for hosiery, cycle and sewing machine industry.

Mahabaleshwar: 1372 metres above see level on the Western Ghats of India, fort and health resort; principal hill station of Maharashtra.

Mahabalipuram: in Tamil Nadu on the Eastern Ghats; famous for temples and monumental architecture. The Mahabalipuram sea-shore temple was built during the reign of Pallava dynasty. An atomic power station is being set up near here at Kalpakkam.

Malanjkhand: situated in the Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh is the location of richest ever copper deposits in the country.

Neyveli: known for Thermal Power Station in the Neyveli lignite integrated project in Tamil Nadu; Monazite factory.

Nilgiris: mountain range in Tamil Nadu; tea plantations.

Nunamati: in Assam is the place where first of the three Oil Refineries has been set up in Public Sector.

Pagodas: The seven Pagodas at Mahabalipuram are attributed to Pallava dynasty.

Palitana: in Gujarat, is famous for its holy hill Shatrunjaya, the most sacred place of Shvetambara Jains.

Pandharpur: town in Maharashtra (in Sholapur district). It is situated on the river Bhima. It is one of the most sacred places of pilgrimage in Maharashtra—known for the temple of Vithoba, an incarnation of Vishnu.

Panipat: in Haryana; scene of three successive historical battles: 1526, 1556 and 1761.

Panna: a town and district in the Rewa Division of Madhya Pradesh situated 176 kms south-west of Jhansi. Panna district is known for diamond mines. Panna town has several buildings of historical interest including Shri Baldeoji temple built by Maharana Pratap Singh. In 1675, Chhatarsal, the ruler of Bundelkhand made it his capital and the town gained importance during that period.

Pantnagar: in Uttarkhand is famous as a big Agricultural University. It is named after Shri Govind Ballabh Pant.

Patna: capital of Bihar. It stands on the site of the ancient city of Patliputra.

Perambur: near Chennai; known for integral coach factory.

Pichola Lake: is a well-known man-made lake in Udaipur (Rajasthan). In the middle of the lake, there is a palace which has now been converted into a hotel by the Maharana of Udaipur.

Pimpri: near Pune known for penicillin factory.

Plassey: a village on the Ganga (West Bengal). Battle of Plassey was fought here in 1757 in which Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah and laid the foundation of British rule in India.

Pokhran: is in the Thar desert of Rajasthan where India successfully exploded her first nuclear device on 18 May 1974. The Pokhran Range runs between Jodhpur and Jaisalmer. The test site is about 150 km from Indo-Pak border.

Puducherry: formerly a French possession; since taken over by the Indian government and now specified as a Union Territory. Aurobindo Ashram is established here. “Auroville’’, an international township in the memory of Sri Aurobindo has been built here.

Porbunder: in Kathiawar, Gujarat ; birth-place of Mahatma Gandhi.

Port Blair: Capital of Andaman and Nicobar islands in the Bay of Bengal.

Prabhas Patan: in Gujarat, is the site of the famous Somnath Temple.

Pulicate Lake: is saltwater lagoon on the Coromandel Coast of Andhra Pradesh extending from the extreme southeastern portion of Andhra Pradesh into the adjacent portion of Tamil Nadu. It has a length of about 50 km and a width 5 to 16 km. The lake is located on the swampy, sandy Andhra plains. The lake yields salt and prawns. Sriharikota Island separates Pulicate Lake from the Bay of Bengal. The only sea entrance into the lake is north of Pulicate town.

Sabarmati: in Gujarat, near Ahmedabad; Harijan Ashram founded by Mahatma Gandhi.

Sambhar: Salt lake in Rajasthan. It is known for India’s largest Brakish water lake.

Sanchi: (Madhya Pradesh); famous for the largest and the most wellpreserved Buddhist Stupa (33 metres in diameter and 13 metres in height).

Sarnath: Situated 8 km outside Varanasi, Sarnath is the famous place of Buddhist pilgrimage in India. In the “Deer Park’’ of Sarnath, Gautama Buddha preached his first sermon. Also located here is the famous Ashoka Pillar of polished sandstone whose lion capitol was adopted by the new Republic of India as the State emblem.

Seringapatnam: Seringapatnam was the capital of Karnataka during the rule of Tipu Sultan. The fourth and the last Mysore war was fought here. Tipu Sultan died here fighting bravely against the British forces.

Sesaram: in Bihar is known for the tomb of Sher Shah Suri.

Sevagram: about 19 km by road from Wardha railway station. Mahatma Gandhi lived and worked in this Ashram for many years.

Shantiniketan: (Vishwa Bharati) near Kolkata; famous University founded by Rabindarnath Tagore.

Shanti Vana: Near Raj Ghat, Shanti Vana is the place in Delhi where late Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru was cremated.

Shivpuri: in Madhya Pradesh. It is 115 km from Gwalior and is also known as Sipri; an international tourist resort.

Sikandra: near Agra; Tomb of Akbar; commenced by Akbar himself and completed by his son Jehangir in 14 years’ time at a cost of ` 15 lakh.

Sindri: (Jharkhand) about 33 km from Dhanbad; Fertilizer factory.

Singerini: in Andhra Pradesh is famous for coal mines.

Solan: hill station in Himachal Pradesh, situated on Kalka-Shimla highway; known for Solan Brewery.

Somnath: temple in the extreme south of Kathiawar sacked by Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni in AD 1025.

Sundarbans: is a tract of forests and swamps—264 km long and 129 km wide fringing the delta of the Ganga.

Taj Mahal: the white marble mausoleum built at Agra by Shah Jehan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.

Tanjore: (Tamil Nadu) famous for museum, temples and library.

Tarapore: 80 km north of Mumbai; Atomic Power Plant.

Tatanagar: in Jamshedpur; famous for Tata Iron and Steel works.

Thiruvananthapuram: (Trivandrum) capital of Kerala; known for Padmanabha Temple.

Thumba: near Trivandrum in Kerala, is known as rocket-launching station.

Tiruchirapalli: the third largest city of Tamil Nadu situated on the river Cauvery is famous as a great educational centre.

Tirupati: in Andhra Pradesh, situated about 160 km to the north-west of Chennai is one of the holiest places in South India. This hill temple of Sri Venkateswara is an example of early Dravidian architecture and is one of the finest in the south.

Titagarh: in West Bengal is known for paper manufacture.

Tower of Victory: (Chittor, Rajasthan); famous tower built by Rana Kumbha, the Raja of Mewar in AD.1450. to commemorate his victory over the Muslim armies of Malwa and Gujarat. The tower is 37 metres high and has nine storeys.

Tribhuvaneswara Temple: is the famous temple built in AD 1100 and dominating all other temples in Bhubaneswar (Odisha).

Triveni: (or Tribeni); in Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh); confluence of the Ganga, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati; a place of pilgrimage for the Hindus.

Trombay: in Mumbai. Atomic Reactors.

Tungabhadra: is a tributary of the river Krishna.

Udaipur: in Rajasthan is famous as a city of lakes with island palaces; Pichola Lake.

Ujjain: in Madhya Pradesh is one of the seven cities sacred to the Hindus. Known for Mahakaleshwar temple.

Uri: village in Kashmir on cease-fire line between India and Pakistan.

Vaishali: modern Besarch in the district of Muzaffarpur in Bihar. It was the capital of the famous Vaishali clan in ancient times.

Varanasi: or Banaras is a town in Uttar Pradesh very sacred to the Hindus. It is known as the religious capital of Hindu India. Famous for Banaras Hindu University, Vishwanath Temple, Manmandir with Jaisingh’s Observatory, Ramnagar Fort etc. It is also known for the manufacture of electric locomotives for Indian Railways.

Victoria Memorial: a magnificent building in Kolkata having an art gallery and a well-laid out garden attached to it.

Vijay Ghat: on the banks of the Yamuna in Delhi is Smadhi of Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, former Prime Minister of India.

Vir Bhumi: Samadhi of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi; in Delhi on the banks of Yamuna.

Abdication: When a King leaves the throne of his own accord, he is said to have abdicated. His act is called abdication.

Ad Hoc Committee: is a committee constituted for a special purpose.

Adult Franchise: The right of voting in election granted to every adult male or female, without distinction of caste, creed or colour. Also called Adult Suffrage.

Affidavit: a written declaration of evidence on oath (to pledge one’s faith).

Agricultural Revolution: The transition from feudal to modern farming practices is referred to as agricultural revolution. It does not necessarily mean some “sudden’’ or rapid changes. It may be evolutionary in character. Like the well-known industrial revolution, some countries have experienced “agricultural revolution’’. Recently, the “Green Revolution’’ witnessed in India is a case in point.

Air Pollution: means fouling up of the atmosphere as a result of discharge into it of noxious and even poisonous fumes, produced by automotive transportation, industries, nuclear explosions etc. The problem has recently assumed alarming proportions and is presently engaging the attention of scientists all over the world.

Alma mater: is the university or school where you were or are being educated. The phrase actually means ‘foster mother’.

Ambassador: a diplomatic envoy of the highest order sent by one State to another. High Commissioner: is the designation given to the highest diplomatic representative of one Commonwealth country in another.

Amnesty: a general pardon. On important national occasions like the Republic Day in India, government may declare amnesty for political prisoners. Sometimes when a new government takes over, it grants amnesty to political prisoners sympathetic to itself.

Amortization: In finance, the term denotes repayment of a debt by monthly instalments which include part of the principal and interest due. In accounting, amortization means writing off of an account over a number of years.

Anachronism: an error assigning a thing to an earlier age than it belongs to; anything out of keeping with chronology.

Anarchy: Complete absence of government or the rule of law. Anarchists hold that, “Every man should be his own government, his own law, his own church.” They oppose all restrictions. They want every body to be free to act as he likes.

Antitrust: Policy of a government to deal with monopoly. Antitrust laws aim to stop abuses of market power by big companies.

Antyodaya: It is a socio-economic scheme to banish poverty. The idea is simply that the man on the last rung of the economic ladder should be helped to rise above the poverty line. The novelty lies in the manner in which the problem is sought to be tackled. Five “poorest” families are being selected in each village and helped to become resource-generating units. Then the next five families are selected and so on.

Apartheid: it is a word from the Afrikaans language. The language is spoken in South Africa. Its literal meaning is “apart-hood’’. The word is used to describe the policy of keeping the white and the black people separate from each other. It also means favouring one race at the cost of another.

Appeasement: The policy of constantly trying to placate the neighbour country and keep at bay the forces of belligerency.

Arbitrage: Buying an asset in one market and simultaneously selling an identical asset in another market at a higher price. Sometimes these will be identical assets in different markets, for instance, shares in a company listed on both the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange.

Arithmedical density: Number of persons expressed in terms of unit area of agricultural land is known as Arithmedical Density.

Armistice: suspension of hostilities by agreement between countries at war in order to begin peace negotiations.

Asylum: means a place of refuge or protection.

Autarky: The idea that a country should be self-sufficient and not take part in international trade.

Autonomy: power or right of self-government.

Baily’s beads: Just before a total solar eclipse, sun’s light is seen in form of beads, caused by light passing through the valleys on the edge of the moon. The name is after Francis Baily, who discovered the phenomenon.

Balance of Payments: It is a statement of all goods, services, and investments or other money payments that flow in and out of a country during a given period.

Balance of Power: Some people believe that rival States should build up equal military strength. According to them, it is necessary for keeping the peace. It is called the theory of “balance of power’’.

Balance of Trade: The difference between the visible exports and visible imports of two countries in trade with each other is called balance of trade. If the difference is positive, the balance of trade (or of payment) is called favourable balance of trade (or of payment) and if negative, it is called unfavourable balance of trade (or of payment).

Bamboo Curtain: The People’s Republic of China is governed by communists. They do not allow free access to, or exit from the Chinese mainland. The restrictions are referred to as the bamboo curtain.

Bank Rate: It is the rate of interest charged by the Reserve Bank of India for lending money to commercial banks.

Bankruptcy: When a court judges that a debtor is unable to make the payments owed to a creditor(s).

Barter: direct exchange of commodities, as opposed to exchange of goods or money.

Barysphere: is the innermost layer of the earth.

Basel 1 & 2: A set of international banking regulations put forth by the Basel Committee on Bank supervision, which set out the minimum capital requirements of financial institutions with the goal of minimizing credit risk.

Basis point: One one-hundredth of a percentage point. Small movements in the interest rate, the exchange rate and bond yields are often described in terms of basis points.

Beta: Part of an economic theory for valuing financial securities, it measures the sensitivity of the price of a particular asset to changes in the market as a whole.

Bharatavani: is India’s first and largest multilingual dictionary in the form of a mobile app. The app, currently featuring 35 multilingual dictionaries, lets users search for text of one language in other languages.

Bilateral: Something which involves two parties. If two countries enter into a mutual defence pact, it will be a bilateral defence pact. But in case more than two countries do it, the agreement among them will be a multilateral agreement.

Bioinformatics: Application of information technology to the study of biological data and problems.

Blackmail: to extort money or to force somebody to act under threat of defamation of physical violence.

Black Market: selling goods at a higher price with a profiteering motive by creating artificial scarcity by means of hoarding etc.

Black Money: means unaccounted money, concealed income and undisclosed wealth. In order to evade taxes, some people falsify their accounts and do not record all transactions in their books. The money which thus remains unaccounted for and is illegally accumulated is called “black money’’. Such money is usually spent on bribes and conspicuous consumption.

Blood Bank: It is a storing place of reserve blood kept for emergency transfusion. Persons donating blood are generally between 21 and 50 years of age, with negative history of AIDS, syphilis, chronic alcoholism and recent illness.

Blue Chip: This is the common stock of a large, reputed corporation which has a stable and least risky growth path. The stocks of such a corporation, typical blue-chip stocks, are high-priced.

Blue-stocking: A term used to describe a learned or a literary woman. The term is derived from a literary club in England whose members were distinguished by their blue stockings.

Bluetooth Technology: It is a specification for a small-form factor, low-cost radio solution providing links between mobile computers, mobile phones and other portable handheld devices, and connectivity to the Internet. The name comes from the Viking Harald Blattland or Harald Bluetooth, who unified Denmark and Norway in the 10th century. Using this technology, a portable phone can talk to a refrigerator, a coffee pot can start up the car.

Bolshevism: Form of revolutionary socialism in Russia based on economic theories of Karl Marx, generally known as communism.

Bond: It is a certificate issued by a government or a business company promising to pay back with interest money it has borrowed.

Book value: The cash value of the physical assets of a company, calculated at the values at which they were acquired, minus the liabilities payable to those having prior claims, such as debenture holders, represents the book value of the assets. This also shows the proportion of the money which would accrue to each shareholder of the outstanding capital.

Boom: It is a period of rapid economic growth, when production, consumption, and employment are high and growing. A boom is also called a period of prosperity.

Bootlegging: is to deal in prohibited goods, especially wine and liquors.

Borstal Schools: are penal reformatories where juvenile delinquents or young offenders are given education and industrial training to wean them from crime.

Boycott: breaking off social, political or economic contact. The first man to be subjected to a social boycott was one Capt Boycott of Ireland. He had thrown out a large number of his tenants from his lands. To punish him for this the Irish Land League organised a social boycott. The result was that nobody was prepared to deal with him.

Braille: system of reading and writing for the blind.

Brain Drain: When the best talents of one country are attracted to another because salary, living and working conditions etc, in the latter are more attractive, and a one-way traffic in talent starts, it is called brain drain.

Brain Trust: a group of experts in the USA, guiding or advising the government.

Brain-washing: To make a person change his views. This is done through propaganda, mental pressure or even physical torture.

Broadband: It refers to the transmission medium or the physical connection with which users can access the Internet. It is the capability of supporting, in both the provider to consumer (downstream) and the consumer to provider (upstream) a speed (bandwidth in technical terms) in excess of 200 kilobytes per second (kbps) in the last mile.

Bubble: It happens when the price of an asset rises far higher than can be explained by fundamentals.

Budget: is the statement of the receipts and expenditures of a country during a year. It is presented to the Assembly for voting. It is a sort of balance sheet of a country requiring the sanction of the legislature.

Buffer State: a small State existing between two enemy States. The existence of the small State prevents a direct conflict between enemies. It is, therefore, known as a buffer State.

Buffer Stock: The stock built up to meet requirements in emergencies e.g., when shortages occur.

Bulls and Bears: are terms used on the Stock Exchange. Bull refers to one who seeks to raise the price of stock and speculate on a rise, whereas Bears means one who sells stock for delivery at a future date anticipating fall in prices.

Bundh: Bandh or Bundh is the name given to an agitational movement aimed at paralysing all civic and business activity in a locality or region or State to emphasize the depth of popular feeling on a certain issue or issues.

Bureaucracy: is a system of government by officials responsible only to their departmental chiefs. It generally tends to become unwieldy and laborious in its working and produces red tape or over-systematization.

Buyers’ market: When supply exceeds demand so that the buyer can get things at the price he chooses to pay a buyer’s market is said to be existing.

Cabinet: a committee of ministers holding the most important portfolios. They are responsible to the legislature and they also work under a system of joint responsibility.

Call money: Currency loaned by the commercial banks to discount houses as overnight or one-week loans. It is included as part of bank’s reserve asset ratio.

Capital: It refers to factories, equipment, and property, other than land, that can be used to produce wealth. It also means money used to buy these things.

Capital Adequacy Ratio: The ratio of a Bank’s capital to its total assets.

Capital Gains: The profit from the sale of a capital asset, such as a share or a property.

Capital Goods: These are goods that can be used to produce more goods in the future.

Capitalism: It is an economic model that calls for the ownership and direction of most productive resources by private individuals. Economies based on the principles of capitalism are often called free enterprise economies.

Captive power station: Electrical power generation plant set up by an industrial unit to exclusively meet its own power requirement.

Carrot and Stick Policy: A policy which seeks to motivate people to go on working on distant hopes is called a “carrot and stick’’ policy.

Cartel: One method of monopoly formation is “cartelisation’’. In this firms having common interests combine together, although retaining their separate identity. They decide on a common price policy, marketing control of output etc. Cartels are of German origin and many were established during the inter-war period in that country.

Caveat Emptor: The meaning of the phrase is: “let the buyer see to it’’. It disclaims responsibility for buyer’s disappointment. The word Caveat has come from legal terminology, meaning, process to suspend proceeding or warning—let him beware.

Cellular Telephone: It is a movable telephone unit. It allows people to communicate over a wide area by using a combination of radio, telephone, and computer technology. The first commercial cellular system in the United States went into operation in 1983.

Censure Motion: means a motion of no-confidence in a government or a group in power.

Census: an official enumeration of inhabitants with statistics relating to them.

Centchroman: Name of the oral, once-a-week, non-hormonal contraceptive pills whose popular name in India is Saheli.

Central Planning: It is an economic model that calls for government control of all important economic activities.

Certiorari: It is a writ by which causes are removed from inferior courts to a High Court of Justice.

Charge d’ Affaires: temporary substitute for an ambassador.

Chauvinism: means absurdly extravagant regional or national patriotism, with overtones of contempt and even hatred for people of other region or countries. The word incorporates the name of Nicolas Chauvin, a French veteran soldier of the First republic, known for a demonstrative brand of loyalty.

Cheque Truncation System (CTS): It is a process that will give banks the freedom to avoid transporting a physical cheque from the presenting bank (where the cheque is deposited) to the drawee bank (where it is issued). As per the CTS, instead of a physical cheque, an electronic image of the cheque will be sent to the drawee bank.

Citizens Band Radio: It is a method of short-distance communication used by private citizens. It operates on the Citizens Band (CB), a group of radio frequencies that many nations reserve for private use. CB radio is most frequently used for conversations between places that are not linked by telephone. Many motorists and truck drivers use it to talk with other highway travellers or people who are in an office or at home.

Civil Disobedience: non-co-operation with government on an issue by not respecting civil laws without resort to violence.

Clearing House: an organization of the banks in a city for the purpose of off-setting one bank’s claim on the other by paying the difference.

Closure: a motion to stop a debate in a legislative chamber by vote of the whole house is termed as closure.

Coalition: combination of political parties. When a single political party has not won an overall majority of seats in a legislature, two or more political parties combine and form a government. Such a government is called a coalition government.

Co-existence or Peaceful Co-existence: means cordial relations between two or more countries in spite of differences in their social systems or forms of Government.

Cold War: Sometimes two countries or power blocs suspect each other. They do not fight against each other, but do everything to strenghten themselves and to weaken the opponent. This state of affairs is called cold war.

Colonial rule: rule of an independent State over an area of land which does not form its integral part and the inhabitants of which are entirely subject to the rule of that independent State.

Communism: is a political system. It believes in a classless society in which there will be no private property. The motto of social life will be “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs”. And finally there will be no State. Pure communism has not been achieved anywehre in the world so far.

Communism and Socialism, Difference between: The guiding principle of Socialism is, “From each according to his ability and to each according to his work.’’ Socialism admits of distinctions between classes, between mental and manual labour and between State enterprise and co-operative enterprise. It also presupposes the existence of State.

As against this, Communism is the next stage in which the State is allowed to wither away and all property vests in the community; class, labour and property distinctions disappear and social life is guided by the principle, “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.’’

Compact Disc: Often called CD, it is a round, flat platter on which information is stored in the form of digital (numerical) code.

Computers: are devices capable of performing mathematical calculations on numbers or magnitudes.

Concentration Camp: a settlement for segregating persons who might be in the way of, or obnoxious to the authorities.

Condominium: Joint sovereignty exercised over a country by two or more countries. For example, before Sudan became independent in 1956, the country was under Anglo-Egyptian condominium.

Confederation: is the combination of States for a particular purpose. Units of a confederation enjoy more freedom than of a federation.

Confrontation: to come face to face. The word is also used to describe the situation where armies of two countries on the brink of war stand facing each other.

Consensus: Trend of opinion or sense of the House. Sometimes, in order to avoid an open split, the Chairman of a meeting takes the sense of the House to decide a point. This is called consensus.

Conspicuous Consumption: is said to be occurring when in order to project an image of prosperity and to show off in society, people start spending lavishly on luxuries. Such conspicuous consumption on the part of the citizens of a developing country is considered harmful for the national interest. It is looked upon as a wanton waste of resources sorely needed for development work.

Consumer Goods and Services: These are goods and services produced for current use by individuals and families. They include such goods as food and clothing and such services as medical care and education.

Consumption Tax: It is a levy on consumer goods. The objective of such a tax is not only to raise revenue but, sometimes, it is also designed to regulate consumption and even production. Sales tax, excise duties etc are illustrations.

Containment: means to hold in check. For example, the U.S.A. followed for many years a policy of containment of China in South-East Asia. Following that policy, it has tried to prevent Communist China from establishing a dominant position in South-East Asia.

Convention: a body of representative persons delegated to discuss or decide certain important questions under discussion.

Copyright: It is a right which automatically subsists in every original literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work. The Copyright Act provides that, except in certain special cases, the author of the work shall be the first owner of the copyright.

Corporation: It is a business organization formed and owned by a number of people. These people are known as stockholders.

Cost of Living Index: is a statistical device used to register changes of level in prices, wages, employment, production etc. Generally, a particular period is selected as a “base’’ period, and the value 100 arbitrarily assigned to the level of prices (or wages or employment as the case may be) ruling in that period. Then other periods are studied with reference to the “base’’ period. The cost of living index number is compiled on the basis of such costs recorded in different places over the same period of time.

Coup: the literal meaning of the word is: a violent stroke. The word is used to describe a sudden change of government brought about by illegal use of force.

Credit Squeeze: With a vast expansion of credit by banks, money supply with the public increases tremendously with a consequent pressure on demand for goods. This means a considerable pressure on prices. In order to check this trend, the Reserve Bank enforces a Credit Squeeze.

Crony Capitalism: Some companies, and even governments, are notable for awarding contracts only to family and friends. This is referred to as crony capitalism and is also considered a form of corruption.

Crossed Cheque: As distinguished from “bearer’’ or “order’’ cheques, crossed cheques are not paid at the counter, but have to be passed through accounts of the payee or of the person to whom the payee endorses such a cheque.

Curfew: in ancient times the word meant the ringing of a bell as a signal for all fires and light being put out. Now-a-days it denotes a prohibitory order against being abroad in the street between specified hours.

Currency, Floating of a: means withdrawing the fixed parity of a currency in relation to dollar or gold, and allowing it to find its own level according to the exigencies of supply and demand.

Current Account Convertability: It refers to conversion of a currency into another currency at the existing rate of all current business transactions.

Customs Duty: is a tax levied on foreign goods imported into the home country or home-made goods exported to foreign countries. (Excise Duty is a tax levied on certain commodities produced and consumed within the country).

Cyberspace: A computer generated landscape which is actually not there. When you connect your computer to cyberspace it opens up a wide variety of things you can do.

Death Duty: One way to have progressive taxation is to levy a tax on the estate of a deceased person. It may take two forms: (i) the tax may be imposed on the gross value of the estate before it is inherited by the heirs; (ii) the levy may be imposed after the heirs have divided it on the death of a person. In the former case it is called estate duty; in the latter case inheritance or succession tax.

Death Rate: is the number of persons dead per 1000 of population per unit of time.

Deficit Financing: is a process by which money is created without productive resources being augmented to back the money supply. When a Finance Minister resorts to deficit financing, the gap between the State revenues and expenditure is bridged up by drawing upon the reserves with the government or by resort to borrowing. In short, it means spending by borrowing.

Deflation: a state of decrease in money circulation resulting in low prices and unemployment.

Demagogy: means oratory aimed at swaying popular opinion in a particular direction. It has been said that demagogues seek to attract attention by playing up real or imaginary popular grievances. Therefore, they are the “mob’s lacqueys’’.

Dematerialisation: Process by which shares in the physical/paper form are cancelled and credit in the form of electronic balances are maintained at the depository.

Democracy: a form of government through representtatives elected by the people. The control is in the hands of the voters who, if dissatisfied can change their representatives—“government of the people, by the people, and for the people’’—Lincoln.

Democratic Socialism and Socialistic Democracy: A democratic socialistic society would obviously assign its first place to democratic values, and seek to establish a socialistic pattern within the framework of a parliamentary democracy. On the other hand, in socialistic democracies, the implementation of socialistic programmes and policies gets precedence over the strengthening of a truly democratic tradition. A socialist democracy, therefore, generally acquires an authoritarian character.

Democratic State: Government through representatives elected by the people.

Demonetisation: Literally; demonetisation means divesting money of value. When large accumulations of unaccounted money threaten to wreck the economy, governments sometimes resort to demonetization which means withdrawing and bringing into question currency notes of high denomination with a view to unearthing ill-gotten wealth and sterilising it.

Depression: It is an extended slump in business activity.

Deregulation: The process of removing legal or quasi-legal restrictions on the amount of competition, as also cutting the red tape.

Derivatives: Financial assets that “derive” their value from other assets.

Despotism: an arbitrary government by one vested with absolute power—a tyrant.

Detente: This term is used to denote relaxation or cessation of strained relations between States.

Devaluation: The currency of a country is primarily used for transactions within the country. It helps to serve as a medium of exchange. But when we try to sell goods abroad or buy goods from abroad, other countries will not accept settlement in terms of our rupee. We have to settle with them either in terms of gold or in terms of some standard international unit. We specify how much a sterling (£) or dollar ($) is worth in terms of our rupees and settle the exchange value accordingly. Devaluation is a term indicating a definite official downward valuation of a country’s currency in terms of its exchange value with other currencies.

Dictatorship: A form of government in which one man is vested with absolute authority e.g., rule of Hitler in pre-war Germany.

Direct Taxes: refer to income-tax levied directly on individuals on their total world income. (Taxes collected in the shape of excise duties levied on goods of daily use or consumption are called “indirect taxes’’.)

Disarmament: reduction in arms, armies, navy and air force with a view to render war less probable. The other object being utilising the money thus saved for constructive purposes.

Dividend: that which is to be divided; the share of a sum divided that fall to each individual, by way of interest or otherwise.

Dollar Diplomacy: It is a condemnatory term for diplomatic activities of the USA thought to serve the interests of American business and to further the “economic penetration’’ of other countries by the United States.

Domino Theory: According to a powerful and influential section of opinion in the US State Department, if one country in a region falls to the communists, others in the region are also bound to follow. This is called the Domino Theory.

Drop-Out: means a person who drops out of an educational institution of the social milieu. Recently this has been happening all over the world for a variety of reasons e.g., the strains built up in an acquisitive society in which “success’’ is everything; the corrosion of spiritual values in affluent societies, etc.

“Earthlock’’: Means orientation towards the earth; it is essential for uninterrupted transmission by a geo-synchronous satellite. Earthlock is ensured by the satellites sensors which “feel’’ the Earth’s radiation.

Ecological Balance: means the balance of elements necessary for life e.g., air, water etc., maintained by nature by the inter-action of living organisms and inanimate matter. Recently, in highly industrialised countries, the ecological balance has been disturbed by careless disposal of industrial wastes and abundance of exhaust fumes.

Eco Mark: The ministry of environment in 1990 decided to launch a national scheme to grant “eco mark’’ on the lines of ISI (for quality) to different products on the basis of their environment friendliness. Similar schemes exist in Germany (Blue Angel), Sweden (White Swan), Canada (Eco Logo) and Japan.

Economic Sanctions: means economic boycott by a single State of another or through collective action of States. Such boycott is effected through import and export control, shipping control, black listing, preclusive purchases, blocking of the object country’s exports etc.

E-lamp: It is a filamentless bulb that uses high frequency radio signals.

El Nino: Metrological phenomenon that originates in the Pacific Ocean and disrupts global climatic patterns, including monsoons in India. It is marked by higher sea-water temperatures and lower atmospheric pressure.

E-Mail: Electronically transmitted messages.

Embargo: ban on arrival and departure of foreign ships.

Encryption: A method of securing privacy on computer networks through use of complex algorithmic codes.

Enrichment: surrounding a particular State so that it cannot expand its frontiers.

Environmental Pollution: Centuries of growing human activities have resulted in large-scale deforestation to the point where, in many lands adjoining seacoast, only small forested areas remain. Massive erosion of soil has resulted in the loss of the original top soil, conversion of formerly fertile lands to great deserts, depletion, often to the point of extinction, of many species of animals and birds on land and fish in the sea. Degradation of coastal areas and beaches and the pouring into the sea of an ever mounting tide of poisonous wastes, have contaminated many coastal areas.

Envoy: Diplomatic Minister, inferior to an ambassador.

Equity Capital: Ordinary share capital.

Equity Shares: Equity shares or ordinary shares are those shares the holders of which take the maximum of risk as there is no guarantee of dividend in their case that is why equity capital is also called risk capital.

ERP: It is an integrated suit of application software modules providing operational, managerial and strategic information for improving productivity, quality and competitiveness.

Esperanto: It is a synthetic language using roots selected from principal European languages, and deriving a large vocabulary from them. It was devised by a Russian physician and linguisitic, Lazarus Ludwig Zamenhof to make international communication easier.

Espionage: practice of spying or use of spies. It is usually a general practice of each country to keep an espionage ring to locate the military strategies of an enemy country.

Estate Duty: is a duty levied on the estate or property which changes hands on the death of a person, and has to be paid by his or her inheritors or successors.

Euro: is the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union and is the official currency of the eurozone, which consists of 17 of the 27 member States of the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. The currency is also used in a further five European countries. The euro is the second largest reserve currency as well as the second most traded currency in the world after the United States dollar.

Euthanasia: means mercy-killing or the deliberate ending of life to relieve incurable pain or disease. Recently, the British House of Lords turned down a bill seeking to make euthanasia legal.

Exchange Rate: is the price of one nation’s currency in terms of another’s currency.

Excise Duty and Customs Duty: Excise duty is a tax levied on certain commodities produced and consumed at home. Customs duty is levied on imports and exports.

Extradition: means delivering up of accused persons by one government to another—to hand over for trial or punishment to a foreign government. Ordinarily, there is no rule of international law making it incumbent upon a State to entertain such a demand (for extradition of a person) from another State. But States enter into extradition treaties with each other for such purposes.

Face Value: The value that appears on the face of a share or a bond. It is also known as par value.

Fascism: a doctrine which sets the State above the individual and gives supreme power into the hands of one man.

Fascists: The term Fascism came into force during the Second World War; Hitler and his co-workers in Germany, and Mussolini and his team in Italy, were known as Fascists. Anyone who does not follow democratic principles, has dictatorial tendencies and is intolerant of opposition views is believed to be a Fascist.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): Direct investment in production by investors from other countries, either by buying a company or establishing new operations of an existing business.

Federal State: is the State government founded upon mutual agreement in which several States, while independent in home affairs, combine for national or general purpose, or common interest in respect of matters like Defence, Customs etc.

Fiduciary Issue: is the putting in circulation of paper money which has not been covered by any reserve of bullion.

Fifth Column: term applied to people who work secretly against their own government and help the enemy.

Fiscal drag: It is the restraining effect of progressive taxation on economic expansion. It causes reduction in aggregate demand.

Flag at half mast: lowering of the flag as symbol of mourning.

Floating of Currency: means withdrawing the fixed parity of a currency in relation to dollar or gold, and allowing it to find its own level according to the exigencies of supply and demand. In the course of the last two years, for various reasons the position of the dollar in the international currency market has several times become very weak. To tide over the uncertainty, other western countries have every time had resort to floating their currencies.

Floor Crossing: When a member of the legislature leaves the opposition to join the party in power or vice versa, he or she is said to have crossed the floor. This is also called “defection” of legislators from their parties.

Footloose Industries: As contra-distinguished from the location-specific industry, the footloose one can be located anywhere because it is not bound to a particular location by specific locational requirements. Most of the cottage industries are footloose e.g., handloom industry.

Four Freedoms: President Roosevelt defined the “four essential human freedoms”as (1) Freedom of speech and expression (2) Freedom to worship God in one’s own way (3) Freedom from want (4) Freedom from fear.

Fourth Estate: By the Fourth Estate of the Realm is meant the daily Press—the newspapers. This is regarded as the most powerful of all the Estates, the others being the Lords Spiritual, the Lords Temporal and the Commons. Edmund Burke, referring to the Reporters’ Gallery in the British Parliament, is stated to have remarked: “Yonder sits the Fourth Estate, more important than them all.’’ The power of the Press has been recognised by the world’s statesmen through the ages, but in recent years the power of the Press has been shrinking owing to the intolerance of the politicians in power who have been placing all sorts of restrictions on the freedom of the Press. The Fourth Estate is consequently in chains almost throughout the world and is no longer the most powerful.

Fourth World: This term is of recent origin. It has come into existence following the abnormal increase in the price of petroleum, effected by the OPEC (Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries). As we very well know, the energy crisis has adversely affected many “third world’’ countries. The group known as the “fourth world’’ comprises those countries who have further slipped down economically and who are experiencing great difficulty in servicing foreign debts due to the energy crisis. The energy crisis, it is said, has pushed India also in the “fourth world’’.

Free Port: a port where no duties are levied on articles of commerce.

Free Trade: The ability of people to undertake economic transactions with people in other countries, free from any restraints imposed by governments or other regulators.

Frequency modulation: It is the process wherein the frequency (and not the amplitude) of the carrier wave is varied in proportion to the signal to be carried by the wave. It is also known as FM.

Fringe benefits: Low or no tax benefits that companies offer in addition to the normally taxed salaries, such as free transport and health care.

General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR): These rules generally empower tax authorities to deny tax benefit on transactions or arrangements which do not have commercial substance or consideration other than achieving tax benefits.

Generation Gap, The: means the gulf that divides the old and the young in their ways of thinking, their sense of right and wrong, their ideas of virtue and vice etc. While the older generation swears by established norms in what they mean by success in life, their view of the sanctity of marriage and other social relationships, their ideas of virtuous living, the younger generation is driven by a compulsive irreverence to challenge all these values and test their relevance and validity for themselves. The conflict thus created is generally referred to as the generation gap.

Genocide: The word genocide means “deliberate examination of a race or a people’’. It was used for the first time by Prof Raphael Lemkin in 1944 in a book dealing with violations on human rights. Subsequently in 1948, the UN adopted a Convention on genocide. This Convention took effect from 12 January 1951. According to it, the signatory States confirm that genocide whether in time of peace or war is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish. According to the Convention, genocide means any one or more of the following acts against a member of a national, racial or religious group: (1) killing members of the group; (2) causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (3) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (4) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; (5) forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

Gherao: These are tactics of coercion and intimidation by wrongful confinement adopted by agitating workmen. “Gheraos’’ have been termed illegal and banned.

Gift Tax: In order to plug the leakage of taxes through the offerings made by way of gifts by a relative to another of his kin, the Central Government introduced the Gift Tax.

Gilt-edged Securities: Stocks, interest from which is considered perfectly safe; usually government securities which are supposed to be backed by gold.

Global Positioning System (GPS): It is a satellite based digital information system that enables to find precise location of objects or places on the surface of the earth.

Gold Bonds: These were introduced on October 27, 1965. The main feature of these bonds was that gold will be returned for gold after a period of 15 years and no enquiries would be made as to how the gold had been acquired. Investment in gold bonds is exempted from wealth tax and any gift of the bonds up to 5 kgs is exempt from levy of gift tax.

Golden Handshake: Retrenchment compensation given to workers is popularly known as “golden handshake’’.

Gold Rush: Literally means a rush to a new goldfield. It can also connote a rush of customers for the yellow metal—a phenomena witnessed in London and Paris in the first quarter of 1968.

Gold Standard: is the name of a monetary system in which a fixed weight of gold, or the value of a fixed weight of gold is the standard unit. Internal gold standard means circulation of gold coins within a country. International gold standard exists when international payments are made in gold or a currency convertible into gold at a fixed price.

Green bonds: These are structured like ordinary bonds but invest in only those companies and projects that help in reducing carbon footprint— renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable waste management, sustainable land use, biodiversity conservation, clean transportation, sustainable water management and climate change adaptation.

Green GNP: Economic-environmental accounting framework which measures the national wealth by accounting for degradation of natural assets and investments in environmental improvements.

Green Revolution: refers to alleged elements of change brought about in Indian agriculture by the use of better seeds, improved implements and modern farm practices in order to quicken the progress in agriculture.

Green Room: The place of accommodation for actors and actresses when off stage.

Gross Domestic Product: It is the value of all goods and services produced within a country during a given period, regardless of who owns the production facilities.

Gross National Product: It is the value of all goods and services produced by a country during a given period, even if production facilities are in another country.

Growth Rate, Negative: According to a study of the global impact of the energy crisis carried out by the World Bank, India may produce an absolutely negative growth rate in 1974-75. This would be so because India is one of the most affected oil consumers. Both fertilisers and pesticides are petroleum-based and may be in short supply in the country.

GST: Goods and Services Tax. It is an indirect tax which was introduced in India on 1 July 2017 and was applicable throughout India. It replaced multiple cascading taxes levied by the central and State governments. It was introduced as The Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act 2017

Guerrilla Warfare: Guerrilla is a Spanish word meaning “small war’’. Guerrilla warfare is a form of war carried on by independent para-military groups against superior forces. Guerrilla bands strike from the rear or on the flanks of the enemy and then disappear in the surroundings.

Guillotine: was the machine brought into use in France in the eighteenth century for beheading condemned prisoners. Recently it was learnt that the use of the machine has been discontinued.

Gun-boat Diplomacy: means efforts to exert political pressure through show of force to gain a desired diplomatic objective. As for example, the USA despatched its Seventh Fleet near the Bay of Bengal while the Indian and Pakistani forces were locked in an armed conflict in Bangladesh. The presence of the Seventh Fleet in the area was intended as a threat to India which in the opinion of the USA was the aggressor in the Indo-Pak conflict of December 1971.

Habeas-Corpus Act: Passed in 1679 during the reign of Charles II. It facilitates a prisoner to appear in person in a court for obtaining ‘either a speedy trial or release on bail. The act provides that no one is to be imprisoned without a writ or warrant stating the charges.

Hallstein Doctrine: is a doctrine of foreign-policy originally enunciated by Dr Walter Hallstein who was Secretary of State in the Foreign Office of Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) from 1951 to 1958. Dr Hallstein held that “any country having diplomatic relations with the Federal Government, which recognised the East German regime would be committing an unfriendly act’’. Accordingly, when Yugoslavia recognised East Germany in 1957, Bonn broke off with Belgrade. But subsequently, West Germany almost gave up the doctrine because it realised that the re-unification of Germany could only be possible with co-operation from the communist bloc.

Hansard: In the 18th century, the proceedings of the British House of Commons were printed and issued by Luke Hansard. Since then official reports of debates in the British Parliament have been known as Hansard. These reports are now printed and published by Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.

Harakiri: is a Japanese way of committing suicide.

Hartal: voluntary closure of all business or work to express protest for redress of grievances.

Hashish: is an intoxicating drug made of the leaves, shoots or resin of hemp or bhang.

Hawk: a term used to describe persons who favour war-like national policies.

Heat Index: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has introduced a heat index for the entire country starting April 2016. The heat index will be calculated based on humidity levels and actual temperatures.

Hijacking: means diverting a plane from its destination at the point of a gun or under some other threat. The intent can be political or private or no more than a desire for publicity by a deranged mind.

Hire-Purchase: is a system for purchase of goods on hire bases. The goods are obtained on hire through the Hire-Purchase Agency and payment made in instalments with specified interest. The goods thus purchased remain pledged with the Hire-Purchase Agency till the full cost with interest is paid. The system facilitates the buyer in making payment in easy instalments.

Hoarding: Ordinarily goods move from one point to another or from one person (seller) to another (buyer). But when scarcity of a good, particularly of an imperishable good, is anticipated it is intentionally accumulated to create artificial scarcity and to profiteer from the resultant price escalation. Dealers in foodgrains sometimes indulged in hoarding foodgrains and raising the price thereby to the detriment of the consumers. The government is usually faced with the growing tendency of hoarding foodgrains, money and many other goods.

Holography: A method for storing and displaying a three-dimensional image, usually on a photographic plate or another light-sensitive material. The exposed plate is called a hologram. Some credit cards contain holograms to prevent counterfeiting. Holograms also appear in advertising displays, in artwork, and in jewellery. Holography may be used to detect flaws in tires, lenses, airplane wings and other products.

Holy Grail: A mysterious, holy vessel, associated with fertility rites, made famous by the authors of the Arthurian romance.

Home Guards (India): voluntary force for home defence in India, organised in October 1960. The Home Guards are given training in first-aid, fire fighting, social service etc.

Hot Line: is an important instrument of international diplomacy. In emergencies where a small error of judgement owing to ignorance of each other’s intentions may lead to a major catastrophe, it can be used for direct contact between the statesman of the two countries at the highest level.

Hot Money: The term has come into use to describe money or currency which everybody is anxious to drop for fear of a fall in its exchange rate.

Human Rights, Universal Declaration of: was adopted by the U.N. on December 10, 1948 as “a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations’’. The Declaration was meant to ensure that human beings everywhere could live in dignity and freedom as equal partners in human society. But neither the UN General Assembly nor the Security Council nor the Secretary General had anything to say when the human rights embodied in the “Declaration’’ were wantonly and curelly trampled under-foot by the Pakistani goondas let loose on Bangladesh in 1971. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights remains a “pious declaration’’ as long as thinking among nations of the world is dominated by power politics.

IMF: means “International Monetary Fund’’. It is an organisation of the United Nations established with the object of stabilising the currency of member Nations by promoting exchange arrangements and eliminating unnecessary foreign exchange restrictions.

Imperialism: Belief in empires built by the use of force and governed for the benefit of the conquering power at the cost of the subject nation. Imperialism can be political (Britain, France, Portugal were great imperialist powers in that sense). It can be racial (as in South Africa and Rhodesia). It can also be economic (a charge usually brought against the USA).

Income-tax: Direct tax levied on total world income of a person in a year. It was levied for the first time in the world in Britain in 1799 by William Pitt to help finance a war against France.

India Design Mark: It symbolizes product excellence in form, function, quality, safety, sustainability and innovation. It acts as a brand extension and imparts competitive advantage to a product in local and international markets. All types of mass produced products are eligible for India Design Mark, which is granted by India Design Council (An autonomous body under Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India), in association with G-Mark, Japan.

Index Number: is a statistical device used to register changes of level in prices, wages, employment, production etc. Generally, a particular period is selected as a “base’’ period, and the value 100 arbitrarily assigned to the level of prices (or wages or employment as the case may be) ruling in that period. Then other periods are studied with reference to that “base’’ period. The cost of living index number is compiled on the basis of such costs recorded in different places over the same period of time.

Indirect Tax: A tax collected indirectly in the form of GST or excise duties etc. levied on articles of daily use or consumption and services.

Inflation: “A phenomenon that occurs when the supply of money and of bank deposits circulating through cheques increases relatively to the demand for medium of exchange, so as to bring about a rise in general price level, developing into spiral wherein costs and prices chase each other.’’ In short, it is an increase in the amount of paper money, which tends to raise general price-level of commodities.

Initial Public Offer (IPO): First issue of equity shares of a company to the public with a view of collecting fresh capital and broadbasing the investor base.

Initiative: right of citizens outside legislature to originate legislation as is done in Switzerland.

Interpol: is the popular name of the International Criminal Police Organisation. It has 90 affiliated countries which have joined hands through it to fight against international crime. Interpol has its headquarters in Paris.

Iron Curtain: Isolation of communist State of Europe from the Western democracies. Restrictions imposed by communist governments on freedom of thought and movement. The phrase was brought into use by the late Sir Winston Churchill, Britain’s war-time Prime Minister.

Jamboree: Jamboree is celebration, merry-making; large rally of boy scouts.

Junta: Factions or groups of individuals who seize political power by force or other undemocratic methods. The word was once used to refer to the Grand Councils of State in Italy and Spain.

Jurisprudence: is the science of Law.

Kala Utsav: is an initiative of Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to promote arts in education by nurturing and showcasing the artistic talent of school students at the secondary stage in the country.

Laissez faire: a general principle of non-interference.

Leap second: It is the periodic adjustment of time signal emissions to maintain synchronism with the coordinated universal time.

Leftist: relatively more liberal, progressive and actively innovating party or wing in politics—(derived from its sitting to the President’s left).

Legal Tender: money in any form which a creditor cannot refuse in payment of debt.

Liberalism: is opposed to too much of State control, condemns all monopolies, whether State or private, and stands for humanism and coownership in industry. In the international sphere, it favours control of armaments and policies of peace.

Limited Company: a registered company in which the liability of each share-holder is limited to the extent of his (or her) share in it.

Lock-out: is a term in industry used for the situation when the employers themselves close the doors of a factory to the employees to force them to accept the imposed terms.

Loftus Law: or as Mr P.J. Loftus, its author, simply calls it “the rule of parity’’ states that “everywhere wages in manufacturing tend to amount to just half the value added to the raw materials by the manufacturing’’. According to Mr Loftus, the value added is the value of the product minus the cost of materials and energy.

Log-rolling: The term literally means a combination for facilitating the collection of logs in a stream. In politics it refers to mutual support among politicians.

Lokpal and Lokayukt: The Lokpal is an anti-corrpution authority in India to deal with complaints against ministers and secretaries in the Central government. The Lokayukt deals with complaints against State ministers and government officials.

Macroeconomics: It is a branch of economics concerned with the economy as a whole, including total production, overall employment, and general price levels.

Maiden Speech: is the first public speech made by a person.

Malnutrition: Protein-calorie malnutrition occurs when an insufficient quantity of deficient quality of food is ingested, or food is inadequately absorbed or is improperly utilized because of disease. Malnutrition, in other words, means faulty, imperfect and usually deficient nutrition.

Mandamus: is a writ or order issued by a higher court to a lower court. Manifesto: a written or oral public declaration of intentions.

Marginal Standing Facility: or MSF is a facility under which banks can borrow additional amount of overnight money from the Reserve Bank against their excess SLR holdings. This provides a safety valve against unanticipated liquidity shocks to the banking system.

Marshal Plan: A programme of economic aid to war-torn Europe, also called the European Recovery Programme, sponsored by George C. Marshall, US Secretary of State in 1947.

Marxism: is the name given to socio-economic theories put forward by Karl Marx, a German-born Jew and his friend Friedrich Engels. According to them, feudalism is dethroned by capitalism. In turn capitalism yields place to socialism and a classless society. They held that changes in the social order are caused by technical and economic progress, because the poor are always trying to improve their lot. They favoured State ownership of land, industry, banking, transport and other means of production.

Masala Bond: The term is used to refer to rupee-denominated borrowings by Indian entities in overseas markets. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the investment arm of the World Bank, in November 2014, issued a ₹1,000 crore bond to fund infrastructure projects in India and named them Masala bonds to give a local flavour by calling to mind Indian culture and cuisine.

May Day: the day of workers of the world celebrated throughout the world on the 1st May every year with the slogan “Workers of the World, Unite’’.

MCX: Multi Commodity Exchange is the first bourse in India to be listed. This puts it at par with major global bourses like NYSE Euronext, Nasdaq, Singapore, Hong Kong and Sydney, which are all listed.

Melodrama: a play with musical accompaniment to the action and spoken dialogue, with or without songs a kind of romantic and sensational drama, crude, sentimental and conventional, with strict attention to poetic justice and happy endings.

Mendelian Law: The law of inheritance propounded by Gregor Mendel, an Austrian monk. The law says when two races are crossed, the resultant hybirds will exhibit the dominant features of one parent, but the offspring of the second generation will show those of both grand-parents.

Microeconomics: It is a branch of economics concerned with the activities of individual consumers and producers.

Mid-term Poll: A mid-term poll is an election held out of schedule as a result of the dissolution of a State legislature before it has been in existence for its normal span of life.

Mixed Economy: Signifies the middle path between capitalism and socialism. India has a mixed economy economic activity being mainly divided into two sectors the public sector and the private sector. Via the public sector, the government participates in economic activity, particularly in spheres in which very large capital investment is needed. In the private sector initiative and drive for productive activity is provided by the private entrepreneur. India had accepted the ideal of a mixed economy as its national policy.

Modem: The device that allows a computer to transmit information over a phone line.

Monarchy, Absolute: is said to exist where a monarch or king holds despotic sway over his domains, and his authority is not circumscribed or inhibited in any way.

Monarchy, Constitutional: is a system of government in which the king is the titular head, there only to reign and not to rule.

Money Market: Field for the investment of money is termed as money market.

Monopoly: It exists when there is only one seller of a product in a market.

Monroe Doctrine: A principle of American policy declining any European intervention in political affairs of the American continent, outlined by President Monroe in 1823.

Moratorium: It is the period during which the settlement of debts may be postponed legally.

Most-favoured Nations: when two nations extend to each other tariff concessions which they do not ordinarily make in the case of others with whom they have trade, they are said to be treating each other as the “most favoured nations’’.

Motel: is type of a hotel built for touring motorists. It provides individual self-contained sleeping quarters with bath, toilet facilities and garage, the meals being generally obtainable at a central restaurant.

Mulki Rules: While the Nizam ruled the erstwhile State of Hyderabad, he had made it a condition that anybody seeking service in the State or admission to an educational institution in the State should either (i) have been born in Hyderabad or (ii) have lived in the State for more than 15 years, or (iii) be the son or daughter of a person fulfilling either of the two conditions. These rules were referred to as Mulki Rules. Though anachronistic and inequitable, the rules were upheld by the Supreme Court of India. This upset the people of the Andhra region who had been feeling that the Rules had been militating against them, and gave rise to an agitation for separating Andhra Pradesh from Telengana.

Multiple Cropping: This programme, initiated in 1967-68, aims at increasing the cropping intensity of land through better utilisation of the existing irrigation facilities together with the development of new irrigation potential throughout the country.

Nagoya Protocol: on Access and Benefit Sharing, negotiated in 2010, sets the standards for benefit sharing between industry and holders of traditional knowledge. The objective of the protocol is fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources.

National Dairy Plan: Launched on 19 April 2012, it aims to increase the productivity of milch animals by adopting focused, scientific and systematic processes and help provide rural milk producers with greater access to the organized milk processing sector.

National Debt: The money borrowed by a country to meet expenditure which it is unable to meet from its own ordinary resources. The money so borrowed may be either for use in productive and national building activities or for destructive purposes such as war.

National Income: Marshall defines National Income thus: “The labour and capital of a country acting on its natural resources, produce annually a certain net aggregate commodities material and immaterial, including services of all kinds.’’ The word “net’’ is of special significance, because from the total gross produce a certain amount is to be deducted as charges for depreciation and wearing out of the plant and other capital equipments, while the net income from foreign investments must be added.

Nationalisation: When the State acquires from private ownership the right to run a service or industry, such service or industry is said to have been nationalised. In capitalist countries nationalisation is done only when the government considers that it would be in the public interest to do so. In socialist countries, it is a general policy.

Naturalisation: means granting to a foreigner the privileges belonging to citizens. After naturalisation, the former acquires the citizenship of the country in which he is naturalised.

Naxalites: The term has come into use to describe radical communists (now belonging to the CPI-LM) who believe in the type of revolution preached by Mao. They want to herald a revolution in India by exploiting feelings of discontentment among peasants and tribesmen. The first such revolt was attempted in Naxalbari in West Bengal in 1967. The word “Naxalite’’ has been derived from “Naxalbari’’. The organisation was banned on 4 July 1975.

Nazism: The word Nazi is an abbreviated form of “National Socialism’’. It was the name of the party led by Adolf Hitler of Germany in the thirties. The Nazis believed that the Aryan race was a superior race.

NCDEX: National commodities and Derivatives Exchange. It is one of India’s three new online demutualised bourses. The other two are NSE and BSE.

Need-based Wages: means wages determined so as to cover the basic needs of wage-earners as distinguished from wages determined having regard purely to availability of labour, productivity and profitability.

Netizens: Persons who use Internet for work, entertainment and other daily activities.

New Colonialism: means colonialism of a new type. Political colonialism has gradually declined during the last 20 years. But economic colonialism is very much there. It means prosperous countries following policies which should give them the controlling hand in the affairs of under-developed or weak nations.

Nippon: It is Japanese name for Japan. The term simply signifies Japan.

Node: Any device that is connected to a computer network.

Non-aggression Pact: an agreement between countries not to wage war with each other and to defend each other in case of any aggression from outside.

NOFN: National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) is India’s first hispeed rural broadband network. It was commissioned on 12 January 2015, in Kerala’s Idukki district. The project will be a “giant leap” to bridge the digital divide in the country, by linking all gram panchayats through the common platform of optical fibre cable.

Non-Plan expenditure: All those expenditures (of government of India) that are not part of either a Central Plan or of Central assistance for Plans of the States and UTs.

Nyaya Panchayat: These are bodies in Panchayati Raj System having judicial function with limited powers of punishment. To settle the disputes, these Nyaya Panchayats employ simple and summary procedure.

Octroi: It is a form of tax levied on goods entering a municipal town. The tax thus collected is generally used for the maintenance of the town.

Old Glory: is the name of US Flag, also referred to as the Stars and Stripes.

Oligarchy: means government by a small exclusive class.

Open-door Policy: the policy according to which trade with a country should be open on equal terms to all nations.

Open University: is a University wherein students are free to join, leave and rejoin at any stage in their education which is organized as a continuing process. One such University has been functioning in the U.K. for some time now.

Options Trading: Options are deferred delivery contracts that give the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a specified underlying security, at a set price, on or before a specified date. There are two types of options—call and put.

Ordinance: a measure promulgated by the head of a State in his own authority to meet an emergency.

Ostpolitik: is a German word. It has been brought into use by West Germany to describe its new approach to the communist countries of East Europe, abandoning the cold war stance.

Panchayati Raj: established in 1959, it means the exercise of power by the villagers themselves and local self-government at the grass-roots. Rightly implemented, the scheme ensures elimination of all the evils and malpractices which have become associated with capitalism, centralisation and monopoly power.

Paper Gold: or Special Drawing Rights: Drawing rights given to members of the International Monetary Fund in proportion to their quota in the Fund so that the expanding world-trade can be financed on international faith and cooperation. It is international money existing only in the Fund’s books and changing hands only on ledger sheets, but the members of the Fund accept it as payment.

Parkinson’s Law: It is a law of public administration propounded by Cyril Northcote Parkinson, British historian, in 1958. According to it “work expands to fill the time available for its completion’’ and “subordinates multiply at a fixed rate regardless of the amount of work produced’’.

Partyless Democracy: Democracy means the rule of the people as against the rule of any individual, however, wise or experienced he may be. But “the people’’ as such signify an imprecise and indeterminate entity. They can be articulate and can make their presence felt and get their programmes implemented only through a properly organised and efficient political system. The theory of democracy itself is vague and fragmentary. The most popular definition of democracy is that of President Lincoln: “Government of the people, by the people, for the people.’’ But the mass of people cannot govern; mob rule inevitably leads to confusion and chaos. Except in a small community, or in the ancient Greek City States, democracy can function only through distinct, properly organised and efficiently led groups of people called political parties.

Party Whip: an MP responsible to his party for the organisation of the members to carry the vote through—one who enforces the attendance of a political party and makes calls on members of the Parliament to be in their places on the occasion of an important division.

Pentagon: Government offices in Washington (the largest in the world), housing many thousands of military and civilian workers in the War Department of the United States (Army, Navy and Air Force).

Per Capita Income: The term means national income per head or coefficient resulting from the division of the national income by the size of the population. Per capita income is directly proportional to the national income and inversely to the population. Unless, therefore, national income increases, addition to population, as in the case in India, ends in a corresponding reduction in the per capita income.

Perestroika: which means ‘restructuring’ was the reform programme started by the Soviet leader, Mr Mikhail Gorbachov, to bring about economic change in the former USSR with, what he called, greater democracy.

Personality Cult: When induced or spontaneous adoration of a leader results in his being idolized by the people, a personality cult originates. It helps the leader so idolized to run the administration as he would like, by the sheer effectiveness of his personality.

Persona Non Grata: a person not acceptable to those to whom he is sent.

Petro-Dollars: the oil-exporting countries are now flooded with dollars as a result of the five-fold increase in the price of oil which has made them fabulously rich almost overnight. The windfall that has accrued to the oilproducing countries is described as “petro-dollars’’.

Piezoelectricity: Electricity generated by application of mechanical pressure on a dielectric crystal.

Ping-Pong Diplomacy: The Chinese technique of inviting foreign teams to international table-tennis tournaments and using such occasion to achieve or promote diplomatic aims is known as Ping-Pong diplomacy. At such sports gatherings, the Chinese leaders often give Mona Lisa-like smiles, creating the impression that China is friendly towards everyone. Some effort in this direction was made at the table-tennis tournament in Peking, and again at the international table-tennis tournament in Calcutta in February 1975. Very often, nothing concrete comes out of such diplomacy; it merely leaves the other country guessing about Peking’s real intentions.

Planetarium: is a device to show the motions and orbits of the planets.

Planned Economy: An economic system in which some or all of the decisions on allocation, production, investment and distribution are made by government or an agency delegated such an authority. India does not fall in this category as it has not centralized form of planning in a mixed capitalist system. The decision-making process is partly under the control of the government (as through the Planning Commission) and partly under the private entrepreneurs.

Plebiscite: direct vote by all electors of a State on a controversial question.

P-notes: or participatory notes, are a way for foreigners to invest in the Indian markets without registering themselves with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). P-Notes are for individuals who do not want to disclose their identity for various reasons.

Point of Order: A question raised to get a decision on whether proceedings are according to rules.

Polarization: literally means the separation of the positive and negative charges of a molecule. In politics it can be said to have occurred when politically like-minded individuals, groups or parties converge on two separate points forming two mutually opposed forces.

Police State: When citizens of a particular State are deprived of the basic civil liberties like freedom of thought, expression and belief, they are said to be living in a Police State.

Politburo: Name given to the sub-committee of the Central Communist Party of the former U.S.S.R. and to similar bodies of the Communist parties of other countries. It is an abbreviated form of Political bureau.

Political Sabotage: wiping out a political opponent (a person or a party) applying destructive methods.

Population Explosion: A sudden rise in the rate of growth of population.

Pornography: means writing, painting or photography describing or depicting sex in such a manner that it excites impressionable minds.

Poverty Line: is to be found at the level of income at which a person or a family can barely subsist. Anyone having an income below that level is said to be below the poverty line.

Power Politics: In the game of power politics, the player’s sole aim becomes acquisition of power to the exclusion of every other object e.g., the welfare of the masses, the good of the country etc. Every move of theirs is inspired by a desire to capture power somehow.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana: It is a financial inclusion scheme that aims at covering every household in India with a bank account and insurance cover. It was launched on 28 August 2014.

PRAGATI: Pro-Active Governance And Timely Implementation (PRAGATI) is a unique integrative and interactive platform, which is aimed at addressing the common man’s grievances and monitoring important programmes and projects.

Preamble: Preliminary or introductory part of the Constitution of a country. It embodies a brief statement of the need and advisability having particular constitutional law passed.

Preference Shares: are shares which are entitled to a fixed dividend before any distribution of profits can be made amongst the holders of ordinary shares.

Press Conference: is a gathering of press correspondents, usually invited to meet a public figure to facilitate or to get elaborations of important pronouncements.

Price Index: A figure which discloses the relative change, if any, of price, costs or some similar phenomena between one period of time and some other period of time selected as the base year is called index number. The base year or period is assigned the index number of 100.

Primary Gold: means gold of the highest purity i.e., 24 carats.

Privy Purse: These were certain privileges and annual payments granted by the Indian Government to Rulers (hereditary monarchs or Princes) of States in India before independence. The Princes had agreed to surrender their States to the Indian Union in return for Privy Purses.

Prize: in modern warfare means a ship or goods captured by the Naval forces of a belligerent at sea or seized in a port. The term can also be extended to aircraft and goods carried in them. The Universally accepted principle is that a prize has to be adjudicated and thereafter either released or condemned by the sentence of a Prize Court. Such a sentence vests the property in the captor and constitutes international title to the poverty.

Prize Court: A Prize Court is a court set up by a country at war with another for judging regarding enemy ships seized on the high seas.

Prohibition: a measure barring the sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks.

Proportional Representation: in the context of electing a President of India is the system under which a college of voters represents the wider base of the electorate, each member of the college commanding a number of votes in proportion to the number of electors he represents.

Prorogation: of a legislature means the discontinuance of its meetings for a time without its being dissolved. A prorogation is ordered by the Governor or the President.

Protocol: the first draft of a diplomatic document; used specially in treaties and agreements before their definitive signature.

Proxy: Means one who acts for another or the agency of one acting as such.

Psephology: Sociological and statistical study of election results and trends.

Public Debt: The money which is invested with the government of a country by her people in the shape of different funds, it is a governmentfunded debt.

Public Provident Fund: which was introduced from 1 July 1968 is a non-contributory provident fund for the general public.

Public Sector: All undertakings financed and controlled by the government.

Quantum Jump: Jumping of an electron in an atom from one energy level to the next level by absorption of a quantum of energy.

Quarantine: a time (approximately 40 days) of compulsory isolation or detention to prevent spread of a contagious disease or infection.

Quorum: minimum essential of members to be present in order to constitute a house to transact proceedings.

Quotation: A statement of a price. It is always for a product or number of products and applies only to that particular transaction for which it is given.

Quo Warranto: It is a form of writ which is a direction to the proper authorities to enquire into the circumstances under which any office or franchise is held.

Recall System: is a political device by which voters can remove an elected representative or official from office before the expiry of his regular term of office. If a fixed percentage of the electorate, being dissatisfied with an official’s conduct, sends in a written petition of his removal, a referendum is held on the subject and if the majority is found to be against the official involved in the controversy, he is removed.

Recession: A slump in trade and industry leading to accumulation of unsold stocks owing to a fall in consumer demand is called a recession.

In recent months, while Indian industrialists and business magnates have been complaining of a recession in trade and industry, Central government spokesmen have been contradicting the belief and have contended instead that there is actually an upswing in the economy.

Red Guards: This is the name assumed by Chinese School and College students spear-heading the so-called “Cultural Revolution’’ presently under way in that country. They wear military-type khaki uniforms with Red armbands and go about enforcing Mao’s precepts.

Red Tape: Official formality or routing delay or obstruction.

Referendum: When there is a controversial question requiring opinion of the general masses, that question is put to vote for deciding the opinion of the people.

Reflation: Reflation is a phenomenon which is somewhat analogous to inflation and aims at restoring the prices to a “desirable level’’ during the period of recovery from a depression or a recession. This is brought about through the monetary powers by the government. The Union budget for 1976-77 envisages certain measures for the reflation of the Indian economy which is believed to have been hit by demand-recession. A heavy dose of investment in the public sector, investment allowance scheme, reduction in excise duties and in the marginal rate of income-tax and wealth-tax are some of the budgetary proposals to generate “reflationary’’ forces to lever up the prices and production in certain sectors.

Regional Rural Banks: The avowed objective of launching the regional rural banks scheme was to meet the credit needs of the rural poor as part of a programme of relieving indebtedness to the private money-lenders.

REITs: The Securities and Exchange Board of India has approved the setting up of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), a move that may offer a new source of financing to India’s cash-strapped property developers. SEBI said REITs should operate with an asset pool of at least 5 bln rupees and have an initial issue size of at least 2.5 bln rupees for shareholders.

Repatriation: to restore or return to the native land. (Generally used in the case of prisoners of war.)

Repo rate: It is the rate at which the RBI lends money to commercial banks against securities. The higher this rate, higher the cost of capital.

Republic: a political community which is not governed by any king and the supreme authority is vested in the representatives elected by the people.

Requisitionists: In the political context, the term refers to those who requisition or call for a meeting or some other action. The requisition is usually in writing.

Resource Crunch: When resources fall short of the estimated expenditure and the gap between the two keeps on widening, the government faces a resources crunch or crush.

Revanchism: the desire to seek revenge. This was a charge occasionally brought by all communist countries against erstwhile West Germany. They accused the rulers of West Germany of making preparations and seeking alliance with a view to engaging in another war against those who had vanquished them in World War II.

Reverse Preferences: are trade preferences granted to members of the European Economic Community by its associate African members in return for preferential treatment to African products in the American market. The USA recently demanded an end to such preferences in view of the discrimination practised by European countries against US trade.

Reverse Repo: It is the rate at which banks deposit their excess money with the RBI for short periods of time. The lower the rate, the less the incentive for banks to deposit increment cash with the central bank. This raises the liquidity in the banking system. It also encourages banks to lend at lower rates.

Revolving Fund: means a fund which is being continuously maintained at the original level by instalments being paid back into it against loans advanced out of it.

Rightists: The conservative wing in a political party or a conservative party as a whole is known as Rightists. All Rightists stand for the status quo or even a reversal of the current order to the old pattern. Generally, the Rightists are believed to be reactionaries who are opposed to socialism in any shape and to progress on radical lines.

RuPay: National Payments Corporation of India—a Reserve Bank of India initiative—has promoted this payments and settlement platform for credit and debit card transactions to break the Visa-Mastercard stranglehold. India will be able to save hundreds of crores in foreign exchange by having a domestic payment system, as Visa and Mastercard are paid in foreign currency.

Sahapedia: is a free online encyclopedia on Indian culture, developed by Delhi-based researcher Sudha Gopalakrishnan.

Sanctions: It means penalty or reward expressly attached to nonobservance or observance of a law or treaty e.g., the British Government announced tough economic sanctions against the Smith regime in South Africa when the latter declared unilateral independence illegally.

Sarvodaya: means “uplift and welfare of all’’. The movement was started by Vinoba Bhave. It aims at bringing about a non-violent socioeconomic revolution.

Secondary Market: Market where shares or bonds are traded through recognised stock exchange.

Secular State: State which treats alike all communities inhabiting its territory and in which all citizens have equal rights without distinction of caste, creed, sex and race.

Self-generating Economy: “Take-off’’ leads to a stage of economic growth where the economy moves forward without external aid in any form, and output far exceeds the growth of population. All limitations and bottlenecks impeding production are removed and the process of growth becomes automatic.

Selfie: A self-portrait photograph or group photograph featuring the photographer, typically taken with a hand-held digital camera or camera phone. In 1839, amateur chemist and photography enthusiast Robert Cornelius, then 30 years old, had created what is believed to be the first photographic self-portrait.

Sellers’ Market: When the demand for goods exceeds its supply at the ruling price in the market, the situation is called sellers’ market. Such a phenomenon is favourable to the sellers. If the shortages persist, the sellers may jack up the prices of their goods to reap “scarcity’’ profits. Such situations sometimes attract governmental intervention in the form of distribution and price control.

Semester System: The semester system is designed to eliminate many of the evils and malpractices associated with the existing system of examinations. Instead of one assessment of a candidate’s merit as a result of the annual examination, the assessment is spread over the whole academy year, the marks or grading of candidates being determined on the basis of regular class work and internal assessment during the term or semester. In many respects, the semester system is a marked improvement on the traditional annual examinations.

Share Price: The market price of a unit of a company’s equity capital is called share price. In a competitive market it is equal to the net present value of the expected future dividend. If annual dividend is devoted by ‘D’ and the rate of discount by ‘i’, the share price is equal to ‘D’ divided by ‘i’.

Shuttle Diplomacy: The rapid flights from one world capital to another and back again in an effort to persuade rival parties to accept a compromise formula, in which Dr Kissinger has shown himself to be a pastmaster, are known as “shuttle diplomacy’’. It was through shuttle diplomacy that Dr Kissinger ensured a truce in the Middle East and, earlier, in Vietnam (197273).

Sinking Fund: A fund into which sums are allocated periodically so that these accumulations together with the interest thereon help in defraying the debt or replacing an asset of a firm.

Sit-down Strike: is a form of strike in which workers do not absent themselves from work but do nothing and sit idle. It is also called “pen-down strike’’.

SMS: Short Message Service—to communicate with each other, usually using a mobile phone.

Snap Poll: A snap poll means a sudden election to a legislature held at short notice before the expiry of its full term. A mid-term poll also means the same thing, even if an election is ordered many months after the middle of a legislature’s usual five-year span. In India this term came into use when some State Assemblies were dissolved by Governors on the advice of the respective Chief Ministers when their ministry lost the confidence of the House. But it was the surprise dissolution of the Lok Sabha in 1971 and the election ordered soon afterwards that has given wide currency to the expression “snap poll’’.

Socialistic Pattern of Society: even distribution of economic power or reduction of inequalities in income and wealth in a country. The Resolution for a “Socialistic Pattern of Society’’ was adopted at the Avadi Session of the Indian National Congress.

Social Justice: means even distribution of economic power so that the rich are not free to exploit the poor or take advantage of them in any other manner.

Soft Loan: means a loan advanced on easy terms with regard to interest, time for repayment etc.

Spamming: It refers to both the practice of sending unsolicited bulk email and using a search ranking technique that causes degradation in the quality of the results produced by the search engine on the Internet.

Speculation: The buying and selling in the future markets is called speculation. It is not necessarily a gamble. In advanced countries it is based on scientific knowledge. Buying at a low price to sell later at a higher price and selling at a high price in anticipation of being able to buy at a lower price before delivery must be made are the essential characteristics of speculation. Speculative activities may cause artificial scarcities or abundance of a good and thereby affect the ruling price in the market.

Splinter Group: Quite often parties have within them certain groups which can be referred to as splinter groups. They are groups of people who differ from the main body in their approach, views or strategy.

Stagflation: is a coinage by economists to describe the state of an economy which is simultaneously overtaken by stagnation and inflation, just as became evident recently in the case of the USA.

Standard of Living: It usually refers to the economic level at which an individual, family, or nation lives. Economists sometimes measure this level by determining the value of the goods and services produced or consumed by the individual, family, or nation during a given period.

Statutory Liquidity Ratio: Ratio of the total demand and time deposit liabilities of commercial banks which they have to maintain as liquid assets.

Stop Press: a special space provided in a newspaper for last minute news when it is just going to be printed.

Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPRs): India is building SPRs at three locations that together can hold more than 36 million barrels of crude to help protect the energy import-reliant economy from supply disruptions and price volatility. The first underground storage cavern was build at Vizag on the east coast, with space for 9.75 million barrels of oil.

Streaking: is the latest craze in the West. It refers to young men and women running through busy thoroughfares dressed in little else except their birthday suits. It has happened in India also at Cochin.

Summit Conference: means a meeting of heads, the top men who deal with the subject before the meeting in their respective jurisdiction. As between countries a summit conference is a meeting of heads of State.

Summons Case and Warrant Case: A summons case is a case in which a person, irrespective of the fact whether he is accused of an offence or not is called upon to appear before any court or before any other officer having the authority to issue summons.

A warrant case is a case in which a person accused of an offence is required to be arrested and produced in a court of law or such other authority as may be competent to issue a warrant of arrest.

Surety and Security: Surety means a personal undertaking to be bound for another, whereas security means a pledge and a guarantee, a right conferred on a creditor to make him sure of recovery. It may also mean bonds or certificates executed in evidence of debt or property.

Synriam: India’s first indigenously developed anti-malarial drug.

Tariff: It is a tax on imported or exported goods.

Tariff Board: is a body constituted by the government to look after the indigenous industries and recommended to the government for their protection in the interest of national economy.

Tax: A tax is a compulsory payment made by a person or a body of persons to a public authority for which there is no quid pro quo. It is an important source of revenue for the modern governments. Generally, the emphasis is on progressive taxation, particularly in the developed societies. In the under-developed countries taxation on commodities, though productive in many cases, is a regressive form of taxation. Sales tax, for instance, in India is a case in point.

Taxation capacity: The extent to which an assessee can be taxed without affecting the will and power to work is called taxable capacity. This capacity depends on: the nature of taxation; the distribution of national income— more equality of income distribution may reduce taxable capacity; the nature of public enterprise; population; and other factors such as willingness of the people to make sacrifices etc. With so many variables of taxable capacity, it is not easily definable.

Tender: An offer made in response to an advertisement to undertake a piece of work or supply certain goods at a stated price.

Territorial Waters: Although attempts have been made to codify international law on territorial waters, it has not been found possible to enforce a universally acceptable limit. There is, however, agreement on the point that every State is entitled to a minimum of three nautical miles or 3.45 land miles. States can also claim limited jurisdiction (not territorial rights) 6 to 12 miles beyond territorial waters for enforcement of customs and sanitary regulations as also for protection of fishing rights or for security reasons.

Third World: From the point of view of international economy, the world is divided into (i) the Western bloc led by the USA, the UK, West Germany, Japan etc., (ii) the Communist bloc, and (iii) the Third World which generally means the developing countries.

Three Ms: These stands for men, material and money. Optimum utilisation of these three Ms is considered the sine qua non in industrial management for the efficient functioning of any industry.

Time Capsule: The term is used to describe metallic cylinders filled with memorabilia and buried deep in the earth so that after a few thousand years, if somebody discovers such a capsule, he should be reminded of what life and times were like when the ‘time capsule’ had been initially buried.

Total Fertility Rate (TFR): The average number of children that will be born to a woman during her lifetime.

Trade Mark: a distinctive mark or sign, or a name given to a product which is registered in order to safeguard the manufacturer’s rights. Trade mark cannot be copied by anyone under the law.

Transfer pricing: It is the setting of the price for goods and services sold between controlled (or related) legal entities within an enterprise. For example, if a subsidiary company sells goods to a parent company, the cost of those goods is the transfer price.

Turnover: The total amount of money changing hands in a business.

Two-nation Theory: Before India had won freedom, leaders of the Muslim League (which was one of the important political parties in India) put forward the theory that the Hindus and the Muslims living in India constituted two separate nations with different religious, cultural and linguistic patterns, and that India should, therefore, be divided into two parts, one of which should be a separate Muslim State to be named Pakistan. This thesis came to be described as the ‘two-nation’ theory. The killing of Muslims by Muslims in Bangladesh exposed the fallacy in this assumption on which Pakistan had been built.

Ultimatum: final terms before a certain course of action vis-a-vis another party is adopted.

Unit economics: It is an e-commerce jargon for making money from every user or on every order.

Universal Suffrage: right of vote for all without distinction of caste, creed, religion, sex or place of birth.

Value-Added Tax (VAT): A tax on the value added is termed VAT. The principle governing this tax is that the person paying for goods or services pays a tax thereon and also collects tax on his sales. The net effect of this tax is that the tax paid is credited against tax collected and only the balance is payable to the taxing authority.

Vape: The act of smoking from an electronic cigarette.

Veto: right of executive head to refuse to approve any legislation.

Visa: A visa is evidence of permission to enter the issuing State under specified conditions and for a specified time. Some countries not only require that citizen should hold a passport issued by his government but also that the passport should be authenticated and stamped by the foreign country into which he seeks to travel.

WAP: Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is a communication protocol which enable the Internet to be accessed through wireless devices.

War Crimes: The victorious allies in the Second World War viz., the Soviet Union, the USA, Britain and France had signed on August 8, 1945 an agreement setting up an International Military Tribunal to try major war criminals among Axis prisoners. The charter setting out the jurisdiction and functions of the Tribunal set out offences for which an individual could be considered responsible. Among these offences were “murder, extermination, enslavements, deportation and other inhuman acts committed against any civilian population before or during the war’’ or “persecution on a political, racial or religious basis, whether or not in violation of domestic laws’’. It was agreed that the plea of having acted on orders from superiors could only be treated as an extenuating circumstance but not as a complete defence.

Wealth Effect: It signifies an increase in the aggregate expenditure due to a fall in the price level and the interest rates. When the prices or the interest rates fall, they induce a fall in demand which can be reversed by wealth effect.

Wealth-tax: It is a tax levied on wealth possessed by an individual or by a Hindu Undivided Family in excess of certain prescribed limits. The object is to keep even distribution of wealth in society.

Whip: (in the legislature) an MP responsible to his party for the organisation of the members to carry the vote through.

White Flag: a sign of surrender in a battle by any of the opposing armies.

World Bank: was established in 1946 in Washington (U.S.A.) with the object of providing capital on loan for economic reconstruction of backward and under-developed countries and also to give technical advice where need be.

Write off: in book-keeping to cancel an unrealizable credit as a bad debt.

Yellow Peril: was a fear often voiced in the USA.in the late 19th and early twentieth centuries that the Oriental yellow races, particularly the Chinese will one day overwhelm the white races and dominate the world.

Yoga: literally means “union’’ (or in unison with the divine spirit); a Hindu discipline which teaches a technique of freeing the mind from attachment to the senses, so that once freed the soul may become fused with the universal spirit (Atman or Brahman) which is its goal.

Young Truks: is a term generally used to describe youthful dissidents or hardliners in a party.

Zero-base Budgeting: It is an improvement over the traditional budgeting and not a substitute of it. It examines critically, regularly and systematically the assumptions of the traditional budget. The budgeted item is treated each year at the Zero-base level as if it was non-existent in the past. Its input is related to the output to decide upon its inclusion in or exclusion from the annual budget. Cost-benefit and cost-effective criteria must be satisfied by the programmes claiming budgetary provision. If these tests are not satisfied the programme cannot find any accommodation in the budget. The merit of this budgeting is that it places equal emphasis on all items of expenditure at the time of evaluation.

Zionism: literally pertaining to the Jews. The movement of Zionism was started by the Jews towards the end of the 19th century with the object of establishing a national home for the Jews in Palestine.

Abstract Poem: Verse that makes little sense grammatically or syntactically but which relies on auditory patterns to create its meaning or poetic effects.

Acronym: A word formed from the initial letters in a phrase.

Aidos: The Greek term for the great shame felt by a hero after failure.

Allegory: is a literary composition seeking to convey through characters personifying vices, virtues etc a significance deeper than meets the eye. Allegories always lend themselves to more than one interpretations. (Example: John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress).

Alliteration: Two or more words following each other beginning with the same letter e.g., How High His Highness Heaves His Haughty Head.

Allusion: A casual reference in literature to a person, place, event, or another passage of literature, often without explicit identification. Allusions can originate in mythology, biblical references, historical events, legends, geography, or earlier literary works.

Alter Ego: A literary character or narrator who is a thinly disguised representation of the author, poet, or playwright creating a work.

Ambiance: Loosely the term is equivalent to atmosphere or mood, but more specifically, ambiance is the atmosphere or mood of a particular setting or location.

Amphitheater: An open-air theater, especially the unroofed public playhouses. Shakespeare’s Globe and the Rose are two examples.

Anagram(Greek: “writing back or anew”): When the letters or syllables in a name, word or phrase are shuffled together or jumbled to form a new word.

Anecdote: A short narrative account of an amusing, unusual, revealing, or interesting event.

Anti-climax: An abrupt and ludicrous descent from the sublime to the trivial.

Apostrophe: Not to be confused with the punctuation mark, apostrophe is the act of addressing some abstraction or personification that is not physically present.

Archaism: A word, expression, spelling, or phrase that is out of date in the common speech of an era, but still deliberately used by a writer, poet, or playwright for artistic purposes.

Autobiography: A non-fictional account of a person’s life

Ballad: A traditional poem telling a stirring tale generally passed on by word of mouth. In the composing of ballads, stanzas of four iambic lines are employed with the rhyme scheme a b c d.

Beast Fable: A short, simple narrative with speaking animals as characters designed to teach a moral or social truth.

Bibliography: a descriptive list of books or book containing such a list, or study, description or knowledge of books in regard to their authors, subjects, editions and history.

Bourgeoisie(French, “city-dwelling”): The French term bourgeoisie is a noun referring to the non-aristocratic middle-class, while the word bourgeois is the adjective-form. Calling something bourgeois implies that something is middle-class in its tendencies or values.

Burlesque: A work treating a serious subject in a light-hearted manner or ridiculing the work of some other writer.

Catharsis: Catharsis is the name given to the process of purging of the effects of pent-up emotions by bringing them to the surface of consciousness through drama.

Censorship: The act of hiding, removing, altering or destroying copies of art or writing so that general public access to it is partially or completely limited.

Chronicle: A history or a record of events.

Chronology: The order in which events happen, especially when emphasizing a cause-effect relationship in history or in a narrative.

Cliché: A hackneyed or trite phrase that has become overused. Clichés are considered bad writing and bad literature.

Cliffhanger: A melodramatic narrative (especially in films, magazines, or serially published novels) in which each section “ends” at a suspenseful or dramatic moment, ensuring that the audience will watch the next film or read the next installment to find out what happens.

Climax: The high-point in a gradual build-up of ideas, each rising above its predecessor.

Colloquialism: A word or phrase used everyday in plain and relaxed speech, but rarely found in formal writing.

Comedy: An amuzing play with a happy ending e.g., Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest.

Connotation: The extra tinge or taint of meaning each word carries beyond the minimal, strict definition found in a dictionary.

Copyright: The copyright of any literary or artistic work is vested in the author for the period of his life-time and 50 years following which it passes into the public domain and becomes freely available to any one who wants to make use of it. Under the Copyright Act, copyright subsists in every original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work and the Copyright of the author is automatically protected.

Couplet: Two lines—the second line immediately following the first— of the same metrical length that end in a rhyme to form a complete unit.

Demagogy: means oratory aimed at swaying popular opinion in a particular direction. It has been said that demagogues seek to attract attention by playing up real or imaginary popular grievances. Therefore, they are the “mob’s lacqueys”.

Dialect: The language of a particular district, class, or group of persons.

Dialogue: The lines spoken by a character or characters in a play, essay, story, or novel, especially a conversation between two characters, or a literary work that takes the form of such a discussion

Drama: A story told through action and speeches of characters with some dynamic action and with some conflict between the characters. The conflict may be outward or external, as it is in comedies or some inner conflict in the soul of a man as in tragedies.

Eclogue: A short poem or short section of a longer poem in the form of a dialogue

El Dorado: fictitious country or city abounding in gold—“the golden land of imagination of the Spanish conquerors of America.” It was believed in the days of early Spanish explorers that somewhere on the South American Continent there was a country abounding in gold and precious stones.

The term is still used for any place of rich promise.

Elegy: is a poem of lamentation for the dead or for some past glory.

Epic: is a long narrative poem telling of the splendid deeds of heroes and heroines, frequently concerned with war. (Examples: Mahabharata, Iliad).

Epigram: is a witty expression which is also brief and pithy.

Epilogue: A conclusion added to a literary work such as a novel, play, or long poem.

Epithet: A short, poetic nickname.

Errata: Errors or mistakes in a printed text.

Essay: A short prose composition presenting the author’s reflections on a subject of his choice.

Euphemism: Using a mild or gentle phrase instead of a blunt, embarrassing, or painful one.

Existentialism: A twentieth-century philosophy arguing that ethical human beings are in a sense cursed with absolute free will in a purposeless universe. Therefore, individuals must fashion their own sense of meaning in life instead of relying thoughtlessly on religious, political, and social conventions.

Fable: A brief story constructed to bring out a lesson or moral.

Flashback: A method of narration in which present action is temporarily interrupted so that the reader can witness past events—usually in the form of a character’s memories, dreams, narration, or even authorial commentary.

Folklore: Sayings, verbal compositions, stories, and social rituals passed along by word of mouth rather than written down in a text.

Genre: A type or category of literature or film marked by certain shared features or conventions.

Hymn: A religious song consisting of one or more repeating rhythmical stanzas.

Hyperbole: An expression deliberately employing exaggeration for the sake of effect e.g. “tons of money”.

Index: In common parlance, an index is a collection of topics, names, or chapter subjects arranged by alphabetical order in the back of a book.

Innuendo: An oblique expression hinting at something, but not openly stating it e.g., “The only thing he can do is to grow hair.”

Irony: saying something of which exactly the opposite is meant.

Jargon: Potentially confusing words and phrases used in an occupation, trade, or field of study.

Juxtaposition: The arrangement of two or more ideas, characters, actions, settings, phrases, or words side-by-side or in similar narrative moments for the purpose of comparison, contrast, rhetorical effect, suspense, or character development.

Leit-motif: In literature this term refers to an object, animal, phrase, or other thing loosely associated with a character, a setting, or event.

Lexicon: A fancy term scholars use when most people would simply say dictionary, i.e., a complete list of words and their definitions.

Lullaby: A song written for children, especially a calming one designed to help an infant go to sleep.

Lyric: A poem with song-like qualities. The original connotation of the word was a song meant to be sung to the accompaniment of a lyre.

Malapropism: An inaccuracy in vocabulary induced by accidental similarity in sound.

Manuscript: A text written by hand (or typed), as opposed to one printed with a printing press.

Melodrama: A play which embodies a deliberate appeal to the emotions, using sensation and violence for their own sake—usually an inferior kind of drama.

Metaphor: is used to emphasize similarity by speaking of one thing as another, rather than comparing the two as in a smile.

Metaphor, Mixed: Use of two or more inconsistent metaphors

simultaneously, e.g., “The cat is out of the bag, but I shall nip it in the bud.”

Mysticism: the habit or tendency of religious thought and feeling of those who seek direct communion with God or the Divine.

Narration, Narrative: Narration is the act of telling a sequence of events, often in chronological order. Alternatively, the term refers to any story, whether in prose or verse, involving events, characters, and what the characters say and do. A narrative is likewise the story or account itself.

Novel: is a lengthy story told in prose in narrative form, highlighting character and incidents. Some years ago, writers like James Joyce and Birginia Woolf wrote novels in which the mind’s response to events and its reflections were more important than the incidents. Such novels have been described as “stream of consciousness” novels.

Ode: A lyric poem, lofty in feeling and style and usually in the form of an address e.g., Keats’ “Ode to a Nightingale”.

Oxymoron (plural oxymora, also called paradox): Using contradiction in a manner that oddly makes sense on a deeper level.

Paradox: A statement which at first sight seems self-contradictory e.g., “The child is father of the man”.

Paraphrase: A brief restatement in one’s own words of all or part of a literary or critical work, as opposed to quotation, in which one reproduces all or part of a literary or critical work word-for-word, exactly.

Parody: is literary caricature which while purporting to imitate the theme or style of an author deliberately magnifies his faults so that they look ridiculous.

Pastoral: An artistic composition dealing with the life of shepherds or with a simple, rural existence.

Pathos: A writer or speaker’s attempt to inspire an emotional reaction in an audience—usually a deep feeling of suffering, but sometimes joy, pride, anger, humor, patriotism, or any of a dozen other emotions.

Pen Name (Pseudonym): A fictitious name that a writer employs to conceal his or her identity. For example, Samuel Clemens used the pen name “Mark Twain”.

Plagiarism: Accidental or intentional intellectual theft in which a writer, poet, artist, scholar, or student steals an original idea, phrase, or section of writing from someone else and presents this material as his or her own work without indicating the source via appropriate explanation or citation.

Poetic Justice: This is a literary expression used usually in estimating an author’s literary work, where the author portrays characters in a manner that ideal administration of reward and punishment are given in the end for the deserving characters. Marlow’s Edward II is an example of poetic justice.

Pornography: means writing, painting or photography describing or depicting sex in such a manner that it excites impressionable minds.

Prose: Any material that is not written in a regular meter like poetry.

Pulp Fiction: Mass market novels printed cheaply and intended for a general audience.

Pun: A play on two words similar in sound but different in meaning.

Relic: The physical remains of a saint or biblical figure, or an object closely associated with a saint, biblical figure, or a miracle.

Rhetoric: The art of using language; principles of eloquence and effective communication. Sometimes the word is also used to refer to a showy and laboured style of composition in prose.

Rubaiyat: An Arabic term meaning a quatrain, or four-line stanza.

Saga: Sagas are Scandinavian and Icelandic prose narratives about famous historical heroes, notable families, or the exploits of kings and warriors.

Sarcasm: The act of ostensibly saying one thing but meaning another.

Satire: Writing that holds up to ridicule the vices and follies of its age. (Example: G.B. Shaw’s Arms and the Man, a satire on war).

Simile: Comparison bringing out similarity between two things otherwise dis-similar.

Spoof: A comic piece of film or literature that ostensibly presents itself as a “genre” piece, but actually pokes fun at the clichés or conventions of the genre through imitative satire.

Stereotype: A character who is so ordinary or unoriginal that the character seems like an oversimplified representation of a type, gender, class, religious group, or occupation.

Stoic: a person who is indifferent to pleasure or pain, having austere impassivity and limited wants.

Tag: Catch-phrases or character traits that a fiction writer uses repeatedly with a character.

Tenor: In common usage, tenor refers to the course of thought, meaning or emotion in anything written or spoken.

Theme: A central idea or statement that unifies and controls an entire literary work.

Transferred Epithet: An adjective or adverb separated from the word which it properly qualifies to some other word in the sentence to lend a particular type of emphasis e.g., “Sausages cooked in a few reluctant drops of oil.”

Trilogy: A group of three literary works that together compose a larger narrative.

Utopia: The term is used for one who imagines or believes in a Utopia; one who advocates impracticable reforms or one who expects an impossible state of perfection in society. Utopia was the imaginary island of Sir Thomas Moore’s ideal state where perfect conditions of life and government existed; an imaginary state of ideal perfection.

Variorum: A variorum edition is any published version of an author’s work that contains notes and comments by a number of scholars and critics.

Vernacular: The everyday or common language of a geographic area or the native language of commoners in a country as opposed to a prestigious dead language maintained artificially in schools or in literary texts.

Wit: In modern vernacular, the word refers to elements in a literary work designed to make the audience laugh or feel amused.

Yellow Journalism: Any newspaper giving sensational news or features with lavish use of morally objectionable pictures or pseudo-scientific articles is said to be indulging in “yellow journalism”.

To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction: Isaac Newton.

A mad man has put an end to his life, for I can only call him mad who did it, and yet there has been enough poison spread in this country during the past years and months, and this poison has had an effect on people’s minds. We must face this poison, we must root out this poison….: Jawahar Lal Nehru said these words after assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. The mad man referred to was Nathu Ram Godse who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi. The poison mentioned means “religious fanaticism”. Mahatma Gandhi preached secularism which was not being tolerated by some section of society who, according to Jawahar Lal Nehru, have been organising themselves by preaching hatred. The “poison” referred to is that “hatred” or “intoleration” which had affected the people’s mind and the result was assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

Eureka! Eureka!: Archmides

Swarajya is my birthright: Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them: William Shakespeare.

Aram Haram Hai: Jawaharlal Nehrua.

Just as I would not like to be a slave, so I would not like to be a master:

Abraham Lincoln.

Where wealth accumulates, men decay: Goldsmith.

Nevertheless it moves: Galileo.

Thank God, I have done my duty: Last words of Admiral Nelson.

A single step for a man a giant leap for mankind: Neil Armstrong.

For fools rush in where angels fear to tread: Pope—Essay on Criticism.

Aladdin: Hero of the middle eastern folk tale which is part of “The Book of One Thousand and One Nights”. This folk tale was added by its French translator, Antoine Galland, who heard it from a Syrian-Arab storyteller.

Ariel: in “Tempest” by Shakespeare. A spirit controlled by Prospero, the exiled king.

Ancient Mariner: is the poem of the same name by Coleridge, who describes his supernatural experiences to the wedding guest.

Anna Karenina: heroine in the novel of the same name by Leo Tolstoy.

Antonio: in “Merchant of Venice” by Shakespeare. A generous merchant of whom Shylock demanded a pound of flesh.

Bassanio: The principal character in Shakespeare’s “Merchant of Venice”; a charming personality of noble birth and graceful manners; a true friend of Antonio.

Beatrice: heroine of Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing”. She plays a delightful role and is famous for her witty dialogues.

Beatrix: conquette heroine of “Henry Esmond” by Thackeray.

Mr Biswas: Hero of the novel A House for Mr Biswas, written by V. S. Naipaul. Mohun Biswas is an Indo-Trinidadian who continually strives for success and mostly fails, who marries into the Tulsi family only to find himself dominated by it, and who finally sets the goal of owning his own house.

Brutus: a historical character of Shakespeare’s tragic drama “Julius Caesar”, a valiant Roman who assassinated Julius Caesar. Julius Ceasar’s assassination by his trusted friend Brutus is considered the most famous classic betrayal.

Charlie Brown: He is the main protagonist in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz.

Christian: the hero of “Pilgrim’s Progress” by John Bunyan.

Clare: hero of “Tess” by Thomas Hardy.

Cleopatra: beauty queen of Egypt. Her character has been dramatised by Shakespeare in “Antony and Cleopatra” and by G.B. Shaw in “Caesar and Cleopatra”. A brilliant ambitious woman of captivating charm.

Cordelia: the faithful and the youngest daughter of Lear in Shakespeare’s “King Lear”.

Desdemona: faithful wife of the Moor (Othello) a victim of jealousy in Shakespeare’s drama “Othello”.

Don Quixote: The eccentric character in Cervantes’ novel of the same name.

Don Juan: The recklessly extravagant hero of a poem of the same name by Lord Byron.

Emma: Aged 20 at the start of the novel by the same name, written by Jane Austen, she is a young, beautiful, witty, and privileged woman in Regency England. She lives on the fictional estate of Hartfield in Surrey in the village of Highbury with her elderly widowed father, a hypochondriac who is excessively concerned for the health and safety of his loved ones.

Faust: The famous legendary figure who is said to have sold the soul to the Devil for a life of enjoyment characterised in “Faust” by Goethe and in “Doctor Faustus” by Marlowe.

Frankenstein: The monster character in the novel of the same name by Mrs Shelley.

Frederic Henry: A Farewell to Arms is a novel written by Ernest Hemingway, set during the Italian campaign of World War I. The book, published in 1929, is a first-person account of American Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant in the ambulance corps of the Italian Army.

Gora: Hero of the novel of the same name by Dr Rabindranath Tagore.

Hamlet: the philosophical and indecisive character of Shakespeare’s tragic drama of the same name. His words “To be or not to be; that is the question” are famous for quotation purposes.

Hawkins: the hero of “Treasure Island” by Stevenson.

Harry Potter: Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of a wizard, Harry Potter, and his friends, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The main story arc concerns Harry’s quest to overcome the Dark wizard Lord Voldemort, whose aims are to become immortal, conquer the wizarding world, subjugate non-magical people, and destroy all those who stand in his way, especially Harry Potter.

Hercule Poirot: He is a fictional Belgian detective, created by Agatha Christie. Along with Miss Marple, Poirot is one of Christie’s most famous and long-lived characters, appearing in 33 novels, one play, and more than 50 short stories published between 1920 and 1975 and set in the same era.

Hyde: the mysterious character in “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” by R.L.

Stevenson.

Iago: the villain in Shakespeare’s “Othello”.

Ivanhoe: hero in Scott’s novel of the same name.

Juliet: love-lorn heroine of “Romeo and Juliet” by Shakespeare.

Jacques: a philosophic character in “As You Like It” by Shakespeare.

James Bond: hero of novels by Jan Fleming.

Kim: the hero of the novel of the same name by Kipling. Kim is an orphan boy of an Irish soldier.

Lolita: Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, written in English and published in 1955 in Paris and 1958 in New York. The novel is notable for its controversial subject: the protagonist and unreliable narrator, middleaged literature professor Humbert Humbert, is obsessed with the 12-year-old Dolores Haze, with whom he becomes sexually involved after he becomes her stepfather. His private nickname for Dolores is Lolita.

Macbeth: ambitious character in Shakespeare’s drama of the same name.

Micawber: the comic character in “David Copperfield” by Charles Dickens.

Oliver Twist: a poor orphan boy whose birth took place in a workhouse hero of Charles Dickens’ novel of the same name.

Peggoty: in “David Copperfield” by Charles Dickens. She is the lady who married Barkis in the story.

Peter Pan: is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J.M. Barrie. A mischievous boy who can fly and who never ages, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with mermaids, native Americans, fairies, pirates, and occasionally ordinary children from the world outside of Neverland.

Pi: The protagonist of the novel Life of Pi, Piscine Molitor “Pi” Patel, is an Indian boy from Pondicherry who explores issues of spirituality and practicality from an early age. He survives 227 days after a shipwreck while stranded on a boat in the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Pickwick: the central figure in “Pickwick Papers” by Charles Dickens.

Sherlock Holmes: the famous detective character in a series of detective stories—“Adventures of Sherlock Holmes”—by Sir A. Conan Doyle.

Shylock: a cruel and greedy Jew characterised by Shakespeare in “Merchant of Venice”.

Tintin: He is a fictional character in The Adventures of Tintin, the series of comic albums written and illustrated by Belgian artist Hergé. Tintin is the protagonist, the eponymous hero of the series. He is a reporter and adventurer who travels around the world with his dog Snowy.

Dr Watson: the friend of the character Sherlock Holmes created by A. Conan Doyle in a number of detective stories written by him.

Winnie the Pooh: also called Pooh Bear, is a fictional anthropomorphic bear created by A. A. Milne. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner (1928).

Dr Zhivago: hero of Boris Pasternak’s novel of the same name characterised as unsympathetic towards Bolshevism.

Abdul Ghaffar Khan: Popularly known as Frontier Gandhi, was leader of the Red Shirts (Khudai-Khidmatgars) of the North-West Frontier Province during pre-partition period. He took part in the 1930 civil disobedience movement started by Mahatma Gandhi.

Abdul Kalam, Dr A.P.J.: Indian scientist who is credited with advancement of missile technology in India. He is known as ‘‘father of India’s Missile Technology’’. Elected President of India in 2002.

Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan: He lived during the reign of Akbar. He translated Babar’s Memoirs from Turkish to Persian.

Abdur Razzaq: was a Persian traveller who visited Vijayanagar in 144243 during the reign of Deva Raya-II (1425-46).

Acharya Narendra Dev: was a prominent leader of the Congress Socialist Party.

Agha Khan: He is known to have led the deputation of Muslim leaders to the Viceroy, Lord Minto-II, in 1906, seeking separate electorates for Muslims in any representative system which might be introduced.

Ahalyabai: was the famous Holkar queen. She was widowed daughterin-law of Malhar Rao Holkar, the virtual ruler of Malwa. After the death of Malhar Rao, Ahalyabai ruled the State with great skill and understanding.

Ahmad Shah Abdali: His invasion in the third battle of Panipat in 1761, gave a death blow to the political fortunes of the Marathas.

Ahmed, Sayyid: Sayyid Ahmed Khan is known for promoting Western education among Muslims in India during the 19th century. Sayyid Ahmed of Rai Bareilly is known for launching Wahabi movement in 1819.

Akbar: (1556-1605) Born at Amarkot (Rajasthan) in 1542, he was crowned at Kalanaur (Punjab) in 1556 at the age of 13 years and four months, as a successor of Humayun. He was the greatest of the Mughal Emperors in India. He founded a new religion Din-i-Elahi. He is known for reforms in land revenue administration, religious toleration, abolition of pilgrim tax and Jazia. He built Humayun’s mausoleum in Delhi.

Ala-ud-din Khilji: He introduced price control covering almost the entire market. Grain was rationed and the price fixed. Iqta, a land-grab system was also introduced by him. He started copper coins. Jazia was collected from non-Muslims during his reign. The maximum number of Mughal invasions took place during his reign.

Alberuni: was a celebrated historian who visited India in company with the armies of Mahmud of Ghazni. He was also a Sanskrit scholar.

Albuquerque: was the real founder of the Portuguese Empire in the East. He conquered Goa in 1510 and made it his capital. He died in 1515.

Alexander the Great: (356-323 BC) was king of Macedon (Greece) who set out for mighty military exploits and invaded India in 327 BC. He reached up to the Beas from where he retreated as his home-sick army refused to proceed further. Alexander died on his way to Babylon in 323 BC at the age of 33.

Ali, Aruna Asif: A veteran freedomn fighter. Played important role in Quit India Movement.

Amar Nath, Lala: famous Indian cricketer who became the first Indian to score a century, and that also against visiting Douglas Jardine’s England team at Bombay Gymkhana in 1933-34.

Amarasimha: was one of the nine gems in the court of Vikramaditya. His work Amarkosha occupies a dominant position in Sanskrit Lexicography.

Ambedkar, Dr B.R.: Head of the Drafting Committee which drafted the Indian Constitution. Leader of Scheduled Castes; he was law minister of India from 1947 to 1951. He organised (1) Samaj Samata Sangh (2) All-India Scheduled Castes Federation and (3) The Independent Labour Party. Died in 1956.

Amir Khusrau (1255-1325): Surnamed as the “Parrot of India” wrote prose and poetic works in Persian, Hindi and Arabic. He lived in the court of Alauddin Khilji.

Anand, Mulk Raj: Eminent Indian writer in English. His works include Untouchable and Coolie.

Andrew, C.F.: was a British missionary who came to India in 1904. After having lived here for some time, he devoted heart and soul to India’s freedom struggle and worked shoulder to shoulder with the Indian leaders. He was known as Deenabandhu. He died in Calcutta in 1940.

Aristotle: (384-322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, artist, poet, and thinker. He was the founder of a famous school of philosophy.

Arjan Singh, Marshal: First-ever Marshal of the Indian Air Force.

Arjun Dev, Guru: was the fifth Guru of the Sikhs. He was put to death by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir in 1605. He is associated with Adi Granth.

Aryabhatta: (AD 476-520) after whom India’s first scientific satellite has been named, was a great Indian astronomer and mathematician. He laid the foundations of algebra and was responsible for pointing out the importance of “zero”. He was the first Indian to suggest that the earth rotates on its own axis.

Ashoka, the Great: (264-228 BC) Indian Emperor, grandson of Chandragupta. He denounced war, embraced and preached Buddhism after the battle of Kalinga.

Ashvaghosha: was the spiritual adviser of Kanishka (the Kushan emperor) who took a leading part in the Fourth Buddhist Council at Srinagar which was presided by Vasumitra. He wrote Buddha Charitam.

Attlee, Clement: was the Prime Minister of England at the time of grant of independence to India in 1947.

Aurangzeb: was the third son of Shah Jahan, who ruled as Mughal Emperor (1658-1707). He levied higher trade duties on Hindu traders in 1679. He also imposed Jazia. He is known for his ruinous Deccan policy. In 1681, Aurangzeb proceeded to Deccan for (1) crushing the Marathas, (2) annexing Golconda and Bijapur and (3) Subduing the revolts of Mughal nobility.

Babur, Zahir-ud-din: was a Chaghatai Turk who, in 1494, inherited from his father, at the age of 11, a small principality of Farghana, now a province of Chinese Turkistan. Babur occupied Kabul in 1504. He had ambition to conquer Hindustan. An opportunity came his way when he was invited by Daulat Khan Lodi and Alam Khan to invade India. He conquered the throne of Delhi after the first battle of Panipat in 1526 and thus founded the Mughal Empire in India.

Baden Powell: (1857-1941) was founder of the Boy Scout movement in 1908 and Girl Guides in 1910.

Bahadur Shah II:was the last king of Mughal Empire who took part in the First War of Indian Independence (so-called Indian Mutiny) in 1857. He was sent as a State prisoner to Rangoon (Burma) where he died in 1862.

Bairam Khan: was the tutor and guardian of Akbar, the Great. Akbar acquired the throne of Delhi mainly through his efforts. He was known as Khan-i-Khana.

Baji Rao-II: was recognised as Peshwa on 4 December 1796. He was defeated by Holkar rulers of Marathas at Poona. He consented to accept the Subsidiary Alliance and signed the Treaty of Bassein on 31 December 1802. (The Treaty of Bassein forms an important landmark in the history of British supremacy in India).

Bakht Khan: During the revolt of 1857, he was the Chief Commander of troops in Delhi.

Balaji Vishwanath: was the first Peshwa appointed on 16 November 1713.

Balban, Ghiyas-ud-din: He belonged to the famous band of Turkish slaves of Iltumish, known as “The Forty”. His period as king was 1265-86. He introduced the Turkish methods and customs of Sajada and Paibos. He introduced the famous Persian festival of Nauroj in India. The “College of Forty” or the “Group of Forty Nobles”, formed during the reign of Iltumish, was broken by Balban.

Banabhatta: was the most celebrated of the learned men and court poet of Harshavardhana; author of Harshacharita and Kadambari. He was the greatest master of Sanskrit prose in his time.

Banda Bairagi: (Also called Banda Bahadur) was a Rajput by caste and a native of Rajauri (Poonch). He became bairagi in his youth but took up arms against the Mughals on the advice of Guru Gobind Singh; captured in 1716 along with 800 companions and was tortured to death.

Barni: He is the primary source for Balban’s opinions on sovereignty and government.

Bedi, Kiran: First woman to enter the Indian Police Service.

Beethoven: one of the world’s greatest musicians and composers. He became deaf at the age of 40 and despite this handicap, he wrote many memorable symphonies, songs, sonatas and concertos. Died at the age of 56.

Bentinck, Lord William: was Governor of Madras during Vellore Mutiny (1806) and came out as Governor-General of India (1828-1835). He is known for many reforms viz., suppression of thuggee; prohibition of sati; female infanticide and human sacrifices; financial, administrative and educational reforms. He introduced English education in India.

Besant, Annie: (1846-1933) An Irish woman who was a staunch supporter of India’s freedom. She has been President of the Theosophical Society and President of the Indian National Congress in 1917. She was the first woman President of the Congress. She started the magazine New India.

Bhabha, Dr Homi J.: (1909-66) was an Indian scientist of repute. He was the first Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, India.

Bhadrabahu: was a Jain teacher during the reign of Chandragupta Maurya. He wrote A Life of Mahavira.

Bhagat Singh: Indian revolutionary who was tried in the Lahore conspiracy case.

Bhasin, Dr Nivedita: Devoted over a dozen years working for upliftment of women in India as a disciple of Swami Vivekananda. She was Irish and her original name was Margaret Nobel.

Bhaskaracharya: (Indian) Bhaskara means the learned. Born in 1114, he was almost the last great Hindu mathematician and astronomer until modern times. He wrote Sidhanta-siromani in 1150 which consisted of two mathematical and two astronomical parts.

Bhave, Vinoba: Father of the Sarvodaya and Bhoodan movement. A saint and stalwart from the generation of freedom fighters and a true Gandhian.

Bhoja King: He belonged to the Gujara Pratihara dynasty which was firmly established in Kanauj by AD 836 He was a great patron of literature and art.

Bilhana: was a Sanskrit historian and poet born in Kashmir. He left Kashmir about 1065 and became the court poet at Kalyana where he wrote an epic, Vikramadevacharita to celebrate the reign of Vikramaditya-VI, the Chaulakya king of Kalyana.

Bindusara: was the Mauryan ruler who was also known by the name Amitraghata. He succeeded Chandragupta Maurya.

Bismarck: (1815-1898) was the most capable and prominent of the German statesmen of the 19th century popularly known for his blood and iron policy. Founded the German Empire.

Bleriot, Louis: (1872-1936) French airman who was the first to fly over the English Channel from Calais to Dover on the 25 July 1909.

Bonnerji, Womesh Chander: was the first President of the Indian National Congress. (The first session of the Indian National Congress was held in 1885).

Bose, Nand Lal: famous Indian artist; Director, Kala Bhavan, Shantiniketan; died in May 1966. He had been invited to draw sketches on the theme of national integration in the first copy of the Constitution of India.

Bose, Subhash Chandra: better known as Netaji of Azad Hind Fouj (Indian National Army). He was a powerful nationalist leader and was also once elected President of the Indian National Congress. He gained much prominence for organising I.N.A. during the World War II. The call “Dilli Challo” was given by him.

Brahmagupta: (598-660) of Ujjain was the third great name of Hindu Mathematician after Aryabhatta and Varahamihira.

Buddha, Gautama: (623 BC to 453 BC) born in Lumbini village in the Nepalese terai, he was son of Sudhodana, the king of Kapilvastu in Nepal. He renounced the world and became a great religious teacher. He founded Buddhism. His preachings were mainly in regard to purity of thought and conduct. The relics of Buddha are preserved in a Stupa.

Bradman, Sir Donald: Universally acknowledged as the greatest cricketer who ever lived. He played for Australia and in his 52-Test carreer scored 6,996 runs at an average of 99.94. He hit 29 centuries.

Cabot, John: (1425-1500) British sailor who saled westwards in 1497 and discovered Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, believing them to be part of Asia, and may have reached the mainland of America before Columbus did.

Canning, Lord: was Governor-General of India during 1856-1858 and again Viceroy of India (1858-1862). He was last of the East India Company’s Governors-General of India and the first of the Viceroys of the British Crown. His rule was the epoch of a great convulsion i.e., Indian Mutiny or the First War of Indian Independence.

Cavour: Count Camillo Benso (1810-1861) was a distinguished Italian statesman who exerted much to unify Italy.

Chaitanya or Gaurang: born in 1485 at Nadia (Bengal). He renounced the world and preached the doctrine of love and devotion to Lord Krishna.

Chanakya: SeeKautilya.

Chand Bardai: was court poet of Prithvi Raj Chohan. He composed the epic Prithviraj Raso—the story of the prowess of romance of Prithviraj Chauhan.

Chand Bibi: was daughter of the king of Ahmednagar and wife of Ali Adil Shah, king of Bijapur. She was assassinated by her own soldiers in 1599.

Chandra, Bhartendu Harish: The 18th century Hindi litterateur, known as the first writer of standard Hindi prose.

Chandragupta Maurya: was the famous ruler of ancient India, known for establishing an elaborate system of municipal administration. His empire extended in the north-west upto Hindukush. During his reign, the Greek ambassador Megasthenes visited his court.

Chandu Shah: On his persuasion, Guru Arjun Dev was executed by Jahangir in 1605.

Charaka: (About AD 80-180) was the court physician to Kanishka, the Kushan King. His work on Ayurvedic medical science remains invaluable.

Charlemagne: (742-814) Emperor of the Romans, a wise and powerful ruler, general and statesman.

Charu, P. Ananda: He founded the newspaper The Hindu in 1878. Was President of Congress in 1891.

Charvaka: is known as the greatest of the materialistic philosophers of ancient India. The Charvakas advocated a life of sensible enjoyment and declared: “While you live, live well, even if you have to borrow, for once cremated there is no return.”

Chawla, Kalpana: First India-born woman to go in space. She was part of the Colombia space shuttle mission of NASA which went in space on 20 November 1997.

Chengiz Khan: He was the Mongol warrior, known as ‘one of the Scourges of God’. He is ranked with Attila, the Hunish leader, as the destroyer of human species.

Chisti, Khawja Mouin-ud-din: is the sponsor and the most prominent figure of the Chisti order of Sufis in India.

Chola, Rajendra: (AD 1018-1042) He was son of Raja Raja Chola the Great, of the Chola dynasty, in the south of India (11th Century AD). He vigorously carried on the warlike policy of his father. He penetrated as far as the territory of modern Burma and Bengal. He overrun Orissa and also conquered Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Churchill, Winston: British statesman, soldier and author; former Prime Minister of Great Britain; leader of Conservative Party and a vigorous war leader during the Second World War; died on January 24, 1965.

Cleopatra: (69-30 BC) famous Egyptian Queen whose beauty fascinated Julius Caesar whom she accompanied to Rome. She is known for her romance with Antony dramatised by Shakespeare in his love tragedy: Antony and Cleopatra.

Clive, Lord: (1725-1774) came to India as a clerk in the East India

Company. He showed such remarkable military genius that he became Commander-in-Chief. He defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah supported by the French in the Battle of Plassey in 1757. Returned to England in 1760; his later years were marked by mental disturbance and ultimately he committed suicide.

Columbus: (1446-1506) famous Italian navigator who discovered America in 1498.

Confucius: (551-479 BC) founder of the great world religion Confucianism; was a Chinese sage and philosopher.

Conti, Nicolo: Italian traveller who visited Vijayanagar around 1420 AD during the reign of Deva Raya-II.

Cornwallis, Lord: (1738-1805) Commander of the British forces which surrendered to the Americans at York Town in 1781, thus ending the American War of Independence. He was twice Governor-General of India. He introduced permanent settlement of Bengal in 1793.

Cromwell, Oliver: (1599-1658) Soldier statesman of England who became one of the Parliamentary leaders and became General of the Roundheads at the outbreak of the Civil War. He established the British Commonwealth and was installed at its head after the execution of Charles I.

Curie, Madame Marie: (1867-1934) Polish physicist and chemist; famous for her discovery of radium; was awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1911. She had shared Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903 with her husband and Bacquerel.

Curzon, Lord: (1859-1925) A vigorous and outstanding Viceroy of India (1889-1905); statesman and administrator. He was Britain’s Foreign Secretary from 1919 to 1923. He was prominent at many world conferences after the first World War.

Dalhousie, Lord: was the British Governor-General of India from 1848 to 1856. His period of office was known for extensive annexations and as far as the consolidation of British power in India is concerned, he ranks with Wellesley and Hastings. He introduced the doctrine of lapse.

Dandin: was Sanskrit prose writer and poet. He is author of Dasakumar-charita and Kavyadarsa.

Darius: was the Iranian ruler who penetrated into north-west India and annexed Punjab in 516 BC.

Darwin, Charles: (1809-82) He was the exponent of the theory of Natural Selection (theory of evolution); author of The Origin of Species.

Dass, C.R. (Deshbandhu): one of the leaders of freedom movement in India; a powerful speaker and politician, founded the Swarajist Party in the Assembly in 1923. Elected the first Mayor of Calcutta in March 1925; died on 16th June 1925.

Dayanand Saraswati: Great Hindu reformer of the 19th century and founder of the Arya Samaj.

Devapala (AD 830-850): was successor to Dharampala, the famous Pala ruler. He established the third important Pala University of Somapura. He shifted his capital to Monghyr.

Desai, Bhulabhai: Competent lawyer, remembered for his brilliant defence of the INA prisoners in 1945.

Devaraya-II: was the king of Vijayanagar, who appointed Muslims in his army, granted land to them, built a mosque and kept a copy of the Koran in front of his throne, so that the Muslims could pay respect to it.

Dhanvantri: a great physician during the reign of Chandragupta Vikramaditya (375-413 AD).

Dharmapala: was son of Gopala of the famous Pala dynasty. He was one of the greatest kings that ever ruled Bengal. His succession to the throne took place in AD 780. He was involved in the contest with the Pratiharas and Rashtrakutas.. He established a great Tantrik University in 810 AD.

Dhingra, Madan Lal: He killed Curzon-Wyllies, an official of the India Office in London, as a protest against the inhuman transportation and hangings of Indian youth.

Dipankara, Atiza: was the most famous teacher of Vikramasila University founded by King Dharampala of Pala dynasty in 810 AD.

Disraeli: (1804-1881) English statesman and novelist. Became Prime Minister in 1868. He contributed greatly to the building up of a great Empire and won the respect and liking of Queen Victoria.

Dolma, Dicky: Youngest woman (19 years) in the world to climb Mt Everest.

Dorjee, Phu: First Indian to climb Mt Everest without using oxygen.

Dupleix: French statesman; appointed Governor of French East Indian possessions in 1742. After Clive’s victory at Plassey he returned to France and fell into disgrace and poverty.

Edison, Thomas Alva: American inventor. Born in Ohio, he became first a newsboy and then a telegraph operator. He invented an automatic repeater for telegraphic messages, phonograph, incandescent lamp.

Edwin Lutyens: Designed New Delhi as the Capital of British government as its Chief Architect.

Einstein, Albert: (1879-1955) German-Swiss world famous scientist known for his theory of relativity. In 1933, he was driven by the Nazis and took asylum in the USA. He was awarded Nobel Prize for his work on Photoelectric effect.

Eisenhower, Dwight David: (1890-1969) 34th President of the USA Supreme Commander of all the Allied armies in the west during the Second World War. He introduced “Eisenhower Doctrine” in 1957, a policy of giving aid to Middle Eastern countries against international communist aggression.

Elizabeth I, Queen: (1533-1603) Queen of England; daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Spanish Armada was defeated during her reign. Her reign is famous for development in literature, colonisation and naval power. Shakespeare lived in her time.

Epicurus: (342-270 BC) Greek philosopher; founder of Epicurean philosophy which taught that virtues should be followed because they lead to happiness.

Fa-hein: The first Chinese pilgrim who came to India during the reign of Chandragupta Vikramaditya.

Firdausi: was a Persian poet who wrote Shahnama.

Francisco-de-Almeida: was the first Governor of the Portuguese possessions in India.

Freud, Sigmund: (1856-1939) was originator of psychoanalysis. He was born of Jewish parents and from 1860 lived at Vienna until, following the Nazi occupation in 1938, he migrated to London. Some of his famous works are: The Interpretation of Dreams, The Psychopathology of Everyday Life, The Ego and the Id.

Gagarin: Yuri Gagarin was a Russian cosmonaut and the first spaceman of the world. He was launched into space in Vostok-1 on 12 April 1961 and brought back safely after a flight in space. Died in ’plane crash on 27 March 1968.

Galileo: (1564-1642) Italian scientist. He was professor of mathematics. He is known for invention of telescope.

Gandhi, M.K.: (1869-1948) the greatest Indian after Buddha; father of the Indian Nation. The Champaran campaign was the first movement started by Mahatma Gandhi and hunger-strike as a weapon was used by him for the first time during Ahmedabad strike (1917-18). Associated with many movements during the struggle for independence viz., Non-cooperation Movement in 1920; Salt Satyagraha; Quit India in 1942. Assassinated while attending prayer meeting on 30 January 1948 by Nathu Ram Godse.

Gandhi, Maganlal: was a friend of Mahatma Gandhi. He believed in his ideals and remained with him during the freedom struggle. He is known to have coined the word Satyagraha to the launching of freedom movement.

Gandhi, Mrs Indira: Prime Minister of India, for a little over 15 years, she was a dynamic leader who steered the country towards self-reliance in every field. She was assassinated on 31 October 1984.

Gandhi, Rajiv: He was Prime Minister of India from 1984 to 1989. In May 1991 he was assassinated by a LTTE suicide bomb attack.

Gangesh: was the founder of the school of Navya-Nyaya.

Garibaldi: (1807-1882) the famous Italian soldier and patriot who was condemned to death in 1834 for being concerned in a plot to seize a Government vessel, but escaped to South America. Later he returned to Italy and became head of a great volunteer army, intent upon liberating Italy.

Gautama (or Gotama): was an ancient Hindu philosopher (not to be mistaken for Gautam Buddh) who first formulated the philosophy of Nyaya in his Nyaya Sutra. He lived probably between 450 BC-AD. 100 and is regarded as the father of Indian logic and the Aristotle of Hindu thought.

Gautamiputra Satakarni: was a great king of Satavahana dynasty.

Ghori, Mohammad: His conquests commenced the Muslim rule in India. He occupied Lahore in AD 1186. In 1191, he was defeated by Prithvi Raj Chohan but after a year avenged his defeat and conquered Delhi and Ajmer.

Ghosh, Arvind: Indian revolutionary who was tried in Alipore Bomb case.

Ghosh, Aurobindo: an exponent of Indian nationalism; philosopher, poet and saint. Works: Life Divine; Essays on Gita; Basis of Yoga; Love and Death (Poem); Urvashi.

Glenn John: The first American to fly in orbit in 1962, he also holds the distinction of being the oldest man in space, achieved in 1999, at the age of 77.

Gobind Singh, Guru: the tenth and the last Guru of the Sikhs—a real founder of Sikh power (the Khalsa) whose major part of life was spent in fighting the Mughals.

Gokhale, Gopal Krishna: (1866-1915) The doyen of Indian statesmen and the chief leader of the moderate section of Indian National Congress. He was the greatest parliamentarian known to India. He was elected President of Indian National Congress at the session held at Banaras (now Varanasi) in 1905 at the age of 39. Gandhiji regarded him as his political Guru. He also founded the Servants of India Society, an organization which has done very noble work till recent times.

Gokhale, Kamalbai: The first actress of Indian screen.

Gulbadan Begum: She was Babur’s daughter. She wrote Humayunnama, a historical account during the Mughal period.

Har Dayal, Lala: was Indian revolutionary who founded Ghadr

(rebellion) party in the USA on 1 November 1913 which was violently antiBritish. He also founded the Yugantar Ashram. A paper called Ghadr was also started by him.

Hari Hara and Bukka: were two brothers who were founders of the Vijyanagar Empire. They belonged to Sangam dynasty.

Harsha Vardhana: (AD 606-647) was the last great Hindu King of northern India. He moved his capital from Thanesar to Kanauj. He was defeated by Pulakesin-II of the Chalukya dynasty.

Hasan Gangoo: entitled Zafar Khan, was founder of the Bahmani Kingdom in Deccan.

Hemadri: who lived during the thirteenth century, was a legal authority on caste and ritual. He kept the royal records of the Yadava rulers of Devagiri. He wrote a voluminous legal digest entitled Chaturvarga-Chintamani.

Hieun-tsang: Chinese pilgrim who visited India during the reign of King Harsha (606-647). He has left interesting records of the conditions in India at that time.

Homer: (850 BC) famous Greek epic poet. Author of the classics the Illiad and the Odyssey.

Hume, Alan Octavian: an English statesman who, realizing the true aspirations of Indians for freedom, founded the Indian National Congress in 1885 which party gained much popularity later and ultimately succeeded in achieving independence on 15 August 1947.

Ibn Batuta: a great scholar and traveller from South Africa who came to India in 1333 during the reign of Mohammed Tughlaq and wrote about him.

He spent eight years in India on his way to China.

Ibrahim Lodi: He was the last ruler of Lodi Dynasty.

Iltumish: was the first Muslim ruler who made Delhi as his capital in place of Lahore.

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar: He pioneered the movement leading to the Widow Remarriage Act.

Iyer, Chokila: She is the first woman to be appointed as the Foreign Secretary of India.

Jagat Seths: were the most important among the bankers of Bengal in the eighteenth century before overthrow of Mir Qasim by the English.

Jaipal: was Raja of Bathinda. He was defeated for the first time by Mahmud Ghazni.

Jatin Das: was a well known Indian revolutionary who died in jail while on hunger strike.

Jaydev: 12th century Sanskrit poet from Bengal who wrote many poems in praise of Lord Krishna, including Geet Govinda.

Jayakar, M.R.: He was an eminent Indian Jurist, a colleague of Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru. He attended the three Round Table Conferences held in London to evolve a constitutional system for India under the British rule.

Jayakar, Pupul: She was known as the grand old lady of Indian culture.

Jija Bai: was the name of Shivaji’s mother.

Jinnah, Mohd. Ali: (1879-1948) founder of a separate Muslim State of Pakistan.

Joan of Arc: (1412-31) the girl whose heroism inspired the French to drive the English out of Orleans and enabled Charles to be proclaimed king. She was burnt as a heretic at Rouen.

Julius Caesar: (100-44 BC) Roman General known for invasion of Gaul and Britain. Defeated Pompey in the Civil Gaul War. His assassination by his trusted friend Brutus is considered the most famous classic betrayal.

Kabir: a disciple of Ramanand, was one of the greatest exponents of Bhakti Movement—a socio-religious movement spread in the Middle Ages which aimed at stopping conversions to Islam and fighting the tyranny of the Brahmins in the social set-up of the Hindus. He believed in the unity of God and equality of all religions.

Kalhana: was poet historian of Kashmir. He lived in the 11th century AD. He was author of Rajatarangini, his masterpiece.

Kamal Ataturk: builder of modern Turkey. He was a fine soldier. He defended the Dardanelles against the British in 1915 and drove the Greeks out of Turkey in 1922. He was President of the Turkish Republic and virtual dictator 1923-38.

Kanishka: was the third and the greatest king of Kushan dynasty (120-162 AD). He was a great conqueror, became a patron of Buddhism and was the only ruler of India who had his territory even in Central Asia beyond the Pamirs. Saka Era started during his reign.

Kautilya: or Chanakya or Vishnu Gupta was a great politician who helped Chandragupta Maurya in securing political power. He was a practical statesman of high ability. Author of Artha Shastra.

Kelkar, N.C.: Confident of Bal Gangadhar Tilak. He was editor of Mahratta and Kesari.

Kharavela: was the ruler of Kalinga. He reigned during the first century BC and Kalinga rose to great fame under his rule. He was a Jain and belonged to the Mahamegha-Vahana line.

Khilji, Alauddin: ruled northern India from 1296 to 1316. It was in his time that the Muslims were able to penetrate beyond the Narmada into the Deccan, though not for permanent conquest.

Kilby, Jack: Inventor of integrated circuit, the basis of every electronic device.

King, Martin Luther: He was an American Negro leader who won the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize at the young age of 35. He has been leading a movement which aims at securing Civil Rights for the American negroes. Assassinated on 5 April 1968.

Krishnadeva Raya: The most famous Raja of Vijayanagar Kingdom, the last great Hindu ruler of Southern India (1509-29). He was a very learned man (considered to be the greatest patron of literature), capable ruler and a great warrior, who often defeated the Muslims. He belonged to the Tulva dynasty. He was the first Vijayanagar King who concluded treaties with the Portuguese.

Krishnamurthy, Jiddu: He was a great radical thinker, philosopher and spiritual leader of the 20th century. He challenged his listeners to overcome the conditioning of the mind.

Kumarila Bhatta: was a well-known preacher of Hinduism during the eighth century.

Lajpat Rai, Lala: a brilliant writer, powerful orator and Congress leader of the United Punjab, popularly known as Sher-i-Punjab (Lion of the Punjab or Punjab Kesri); one of the founders of Dayanand Anglo-Vedic College, Lahore; leader of the Nationalist Party in Assembly. He died of fatal lathi blows by the police while lecturing against Simon Commission in Lahore.

Lackland, John: (1167-1216) King of England from 1199 till his death at Newark after deposition by the Barons in 1216. He granted, under compulsion, the Magna Carta, England’s great bulwark of liberty.

Lakshmi Bai, Rani of Jhansi: Rani Lakshmi Bai, famous as Rani of Jhansi, was queen ruler of Jhansi, a district of Bundelkhand in Uttar Pradesh. She was a brave woman warrior and was one of the leading personalities who took active part in the first War of Indian Independence in 1857 (the so-called Indian Mutiny). She is said to be the bravest and most capable heroine of the War of Independence.

Laughton, Charles: (1151-1228) He was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1213, and one of the chief instruments in forcing the Magna Carta from King John.

Lenin: (Russian) Nikolai Lenin (1870-1924) was founder of Bolshevik communism and by far the greatest single driving force behind the Soviet revolution of Oct-November 1917.

Leonardo da Vinci: one of the greatest all-round geniuses the world has known; painter, architect, sculptor, scientist, engineer and musician. Famed as painter of The Last Supper, Mona Lisa and other great works.

Lincoln, Abraham: (1809-1865) a lawyer in early life, was returned to Congress in 1846 from Springfield, Illinois and was elected 16th President of the United States of America. He abolished slavery in the USA. He was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth in 1865.

Lloyd, George: He was Prime Minister of Britain (1916-22). He was one of those primarily responsible for the Versailles peace settlement.

Lokahitawadi: was the first reformer of Maharashtra to challenge the old authorities and old traditions.

Louis XVI: (1754-93) The king of France who was executed in 1793 after the French Revolution which had taken place in 1789. The history of King Louis XVI is the history of French Revolution.

Magellan: Commanded the first expedition in 1519 to sail round the world. Discovered passages to the Pacific from the Atlantic through Straits later on named after him.

Mahavira: (540-468 BC) 24th and the last Jain tirthankara. Born in a village near Vaishali in North Bihar. Died at a place called Pavapuri near modern Rajgir in South Bihar. He was the real founder of Jainism. He introduced Brahamcharya.

Mahendravarman-I: (600-630) was Pallava king known for his architectural skill. He introduced the method of scooping out entire temples from the solid rock, as at Mamlapuram.

Malaviya, Madan Mohan: a great Indian nationalist. He had been long associated with Congress Party and was thrice elected its President. Leader of the Hindu Mahasabha; founder of the Banaras Hindu University. He was conferred the Bharat Ratna in 2014 (posthumously).

Malik Kafur: He was military general of Allauddin Khilji.

Man Singh: was the adopted son of Raja Bhagwan Das. He fought against Rana Pratap in 1576 and won the battle of Gogunda. He was appointed by Akbar to govern Kabul. He died in the ninth year of Jehangir’s reign.

Mangal Pandey: He had the unique distinction of firing the first shot in the Rebellion of 1857.

Mandela, Nelson: First black to be elected President of South Africa. Was imprisoned for 27 years by the White regime of South Africa for his opposition to apartheid. Awarded Nobel peace prize in 1993. Died on 5 December 2013.

Manu: famous Hindu law-giver; author of Manu Simriti.

Mao Tse-tung: The inspiration behind the great communist revolution that transformed China and sent shock waves throughout the world. He was a warrior leader who taught that “political power grows out of the barrel of a gun” and personally wielded more power over more people than any man before.

Marco Polo: (1256-1323) famous Venetian traveller and explorer; the first European to visit China; made journeys through China, India and other Eastern countries and published a record of his wanderings.

Marx, Karl: (1818-83) German philosopher and socialist. Life-partner and friend of Engels. Wrote many important works on socialism. Author of DasKapital. Communism is based on his teachings.

Maurya, Chandra Gupta (322-289 BC) was the founder of the Maurya dynasty and also founder of the first historical Empire of India.

Megasthenes: was an ambassador to Chandra Gupta Maurya’s court sent by Seleucus. He lived in Patliputra for five years (302 BC to 298 BC). The account written by him of India in his book Indica is a source of our knowledge of that period.

Menuhin, Yehudi: One of the world’s most brilliant and celebrated violinists of 20th century.

Metcalfe, Sir Charles: known as the Liberator of the Indian Press, was British Governor-General of India (1835-36).

Michaelangelo: the renowned Italian artist, painter, sculptor, architect and poet; one of the greatest geniuses.

Mira Bai: (1450-1547) was a mystic and Hindi poetess. She was said to have been a Rajput princess of Chittor and to have married the Rana of Udaipur. She was disciple of saint Raidas. She composed and sang hyumns of praise in honour of Lord Krishna whom she addressed as Girdharhari. She wrote in Braj dialect of Western Hindi.

Mir Jaffar: He deserted Siraj-ud-Dowlah and joined the English under Lord Clive when the Battle of Plassey (1757) was raging with utmost fury. He granted an extra allowance called Double Bhatta to the English troops.

Mohammad, the Prophet: Born in AD 570 was the founder of Islam.

Mohammad-bin-Qasim: was the first Muslim to invade India. The Arab conquest of Sind took place in AD 712 under his leadership.

Mohammed Bin Tughlaq: (1325-51) a very learned man who possessed an uncommon intelligence and remarkable memory but was an unsuccessful and unpopular emperor. He set up a department of agriculture. In 1327, he shifted his capital from Delhi to Devagiri, re-named by him as Daulatabad.

Montessori, Madam: (1870-1952) Italian educator and originator of the method of education known as Montessori system. Under this system, the teacher provides the necessary didactic materials and shows their use, but leaves the child to handle them for himself.

Mother Teresa: She was the Albanian-born Roman Catholic nun who moved to Calcutta’s slum “to Serve God among the Poorest of the Poor”. She established the religious order named as “Missionaries of Charity” in 1949. She had to her credit a number of national and international awards including the Nobel Peace Prize (1979), Bharat Ratna (1980), and Magsaysay Award. She became a legend in her own life time. She died on 5 September 1997.

Mountbatten, Lord: Admiral of the (British) Fleet. He was the last British Viceroy of India and the first Governor-General of free India.

Munda Birsa: Organised an agrarian and political rebellion of the Mundas of the Ranchi region against the Zamindars, Hakims, Police and money lenders in 1899.

Munshi, K.M.: Founder of Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan. He started his career as an advocate and soon made his mark. He played an active role in the national freedom movement and held important public office for nearly a quarter of a century. He was also a great writer, educationist, and expert on constitutional law.

Mussolini, Benito: (1883-1945) founder of the Fascist Party and dictator of Italy (1925-43). Shot dead by partisans.

Muzaffar Ahmed: He was arrested in the Kanpur and Meerut conspiracy cases. Was also the editor of the Left-wing paper Navyug.

Nagarjuna: was the philosopher scientist and a great figure of the court of Kanishka whom Hieun-Tsang called “one of the four lights of the world”. He enunciated the theory of Relativity in his great work called Madhyamika Sutra. He is rightly called the Indian Einstein.

Naidu, Sarojini: She was a gifted Indian poetess of English language, commonly known as the Nightingale of India. She was also an orator of eloquence. She was President of the Indian National Congress in 1925; was the first woman Governor of an Indian State (Governor of Uttar Pradesh) after independence.

Naipaul, Sir V.S.: Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul, a citizen of Trinidad, he won the Nobel prize for literature in 2001. He was the seventh Indian or person of Indian origin to be awarded the Nobel prize and second for literature, after Rabindranath Tagore.

Nam Dev: an exponent of Bhakti cult, he hailed from Maharashtra.

Narendra Dev: Formed the Congress Socialist Party in 1934 along with Minoo Masani and J.P. Narayan.

Nanak, Guru: born in 1469 at Talwandi (now called Nankana Sahib) in Sheikhupura district (now in Pakistan). Founder of the Sikh faith. Died in 1538 at Dera Baba Nanak.

Nanda Kumar: was a Brahmin of high rank who held an important position in Siraj-ud-Daulah’s Government. In March 1775, he charged Warren Hastings, the then Governor-General, with having accepted presents to the tune of many lakhs among which were ` 3.5 lakh from Munni Begum, widow of the treacherous Mir Jafar, for her appointment as guardian of her minor son. Before Nanda Kumar could place his evidence, Warren Hastings stage-managed his prosecution for forgery. Nanda Kumar was tried and sentenced to death.

Naoroji, Dadabhai: popularly known as the “Grand Old Man” of India, was a great nationalist. He was also President of the Indian National Congress. He was earlier elected to the British Parliament. He put forth the theory of the Drain of India’s resources to England.

Napoleon Bonaparte: (1776-1821) great French statesman and soldier who rose to be the Emperor of post-Revolution France. He won series of splendid victories against England, Russia and Austria in 1805 but was completely defeated in the battle of Waterloo in June 1815 and exiled to St Helena where he died six years later.

Narasimhavarman-I: (630-660) son of Mahendravarman-I, was the greatest of the Pallava kings. He was patron of the Sanskrit poet Dandin. Hieun-Tsang, the Chinese traveller, visited his kingdom.

Nehru, Jawahar Lal: one of the world’s greatest statesmen. A great Indian leader and maker of modern India. He was Prime Minister of India from 1947 till his death on 27 May 1964.

Nehru, Motilal: Illustrious father of Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru. A great patriot, famous lawyer and leader of the Swaraj Party; later joined the Congress and sacrificed his all for the country.

Nelson, Lord: (1758-1805) notable English Admiral and Naval hero. He victoriously commanded the British Fleet in Mediterranean battles, the most famous of which is the Battle of Trafalgar in which he was mortally wounded.

Nero: (AD 37-68) a tyrant and notorious sixth Roman emperor responsible for persecution of his countrymen.

Newton: Sir Issac Newton (1642-1727) English physical scientist and mathematician is generally known as world’s greatest man of science. He achieved immortal fame for his work on the nature of white light, the calculus and the law of gravitation.

Nightingale, Florence: (1820-1910) famous hospital reformer. She took to nursing as a career and went to Crimea and organised women’s nursing service in the Crimean War of 1854.

Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jha: is known for his introduction of a new calendar, a new system of coinage, and new scales of weights and measures.

Norgay, Tenzing: Internationally renowned mountaineer who along with Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand made the first successful ascent of Mt Everest.

Nur Jahan: was the Mughal Queen whose name was written on the Mughal firmans and inscribed on the coins. Originally known as Mihir-ulnisa, whom Jahangir married in May 1611, was formerly wife of Sher Afghan.

Pal, Bachendri: First Indian woman to conquer Mt Everest, the world’s highest peak.

Panini: a great Sanskrit grammarian of ancient India.

Paratanka-I: was the first important ruler of the Chola dynasty in AD 907. He ruled for almost half a century. He captured Madurai, capital of Pandyas.

Parshava (or Parshvanatha): (?872-?772BC) He was the 23rd Jain tirthankara. He established a community of monks to propagate his doctrines and also admitted women into an order of nuns. He laid down the four vows of (1) ahimsa (non-injury), (2) satya (truth), (3) asteya (non-stealing) and (4) aparigraha (non-acquiring of property).

Patel, Sardar Vallabhbhai: (1875-1950) a great and vigorous Congress leader and late Deputy Prime Minister of India, well known as an iron man. A great administrator who integrated all the princely States of India as part of the country. He is also popularly known as the “Bismark of India”.

Pericles: (490-429 BC) distinguished Athenian statesman, orator and General. Athens rose to its fullest glory due to his efforts.

Peary, Robert: (1856-1920) American explorer; first to reach North Pole in 1909.

Phidias: famous for his works in gold, ivory and bronze. Known for the sculptures in the British Museum: The Elgin Marbles.

Picasso: (1881-1973) Spanish painter. His work is to be found in public galleries and private collections all over the world.

Plato: (427-347 BC) the renowned Greek philosopher. His Dialogues and Republic are among the greatest ancient works. He was Socrates’ disciple and Aristotle’s teacher.

Princip, James: a civil servant in the East India Company of Bengal, he was the first to decipher Ashokan inscriptions in 1837 engraved in Brahmi script in Prakrit language.

Prithvi Raj Chohan: a legendary figure in Indian history. A great warrior of his time, valiant soldier and able ruler. He waged many wars against his neighbours. In 1191 he defeated Mohammad Ghori but next year in 1192 was defeated by the latter and put to death.

Pulakesin II: (608-642) The most powerful ruler of Chalukya dynasty in the Deccan. He extended his territory in all directions and in doing so came into conflict with both Harsha in the north and with the Pallavas in the south.

Purandaradasa: was the earliest and the most celebrated of the Kanarese classical singers. He was once the favourite of the Vijayanagar court. He systematized Karnataka music in his masterly compositions.

Pushyamitra Sunga: (183-161 BC) was the Commander-in-Chief of the Maurya armies in the last days of the Mauryas. In approximately 185 BC he murdered his master and founded the Sunga dynasty (185-72 BC).

Qutab-ud-din Aibak: was founder of the Slave dynasty in India (120690). He was slave of Mu ’iz-ud-din Muhammad Ghuri. The famous Qutab Minar at Delhi was begun by him (and completed by Iltumish).

Radcliffe, Sir Cyril: He was responsible for demarcating the boundary between India and Pakistan in 1947. He was appointed chairman of the two boundary commissions set up by the British Government to effect partition of Punjab and Bengal.

Radhakrishnan, Dr S.: (1888-1975) was a great Indian scholar; philosopher and former President of the Indian Republic (1962-67). He has been professor of eastern religions and ethics at Oxford (1936-52); was Ambassador to Moscow (1949-52) and the first Vice-President of India (1952-62). Author of commentary on Bhagwat Gita; The Hindu View of Life; Indian Philosophy.

Rajaraja I, the Great: (985-1014) was a king of the Chola dynasty in the south of India. He was a great conqueror. His conquests included the territories of the Cheras, Pandyas, Vengi, Kalinga, and even Ceylon and the Laccadive and Maldive Islands. Under him, the Chola power reached its zenith. He was responsible for the creation of the great Siva temple at Tanjore.

Rajasekhara: (920) was court poet of Mahendrapala-I of the Pratihara empire. He is author of the play Karpura-manjari.

Rajendra Prasad, Dr: (1884-1963) First President of the Indian Republic (1950-62).

Ramakrishna Parmhansa: Great religious saint and teacher of Bengal whose teachings led Swami Vivekananda to found the Rama Krishna Mission.

Raman, C.V.: (1888-1970) was an eminent Indian scientist, F.R.S., National Professor of Physics and founder Director of Raman Research Institute, Bangalore. He was awarded Nobel Prize for his discovery of ‘Raman Effect’ (1930). His work on study of crystal structure is of unique importance. He died on 20 November 1970.

Ramanuj Acharya: the great Vaishnava teacher of Tamil Nad; founder of Bhakti Movement. He was born in Tirupati.

Ramanna, Dr Raja: Doyen of India’s nuclear programme.

Ramdas, Guru: Fourth Guru of Sikhs. In 1577, Akbar granted to him the site with a tank in Amritsar for construction of Golden Temple. Amritsar was thus established as the headquarters of Sikh faith.

Ram Prasad Bismil: He was Indian revolutionary tried in Kakori conspiracy case.

Ranade, Mahadev Govind (1842-1901): was a great social and religious reformer who devoted his energies for eradication of Child marriage and purdah system. He was one of the architects of Prarthana Samaj.

Rana Pratap: the bravest and the most illustrious figure in the history of Rajputs. A great patriot who refused to submit to Akbar—the great Mughal Emperor.

Rana Sanga: Rajput ruler of Mewar; a veteran warrior who had lost one eye, one hand, one leg and had scars of eighty wounds on his body. Defeated by Babar in 1527 at the battle of Kanwaha.

Ranga, N.G.: Founding member of All India India Kisan Sabha. He is also known for being the longest serving Parliamentarian in the world.

Ranjit Singh Maharaja: He was the greatest Indian ruler of his time and founder of the Sikh kingdom in Punjab. He was born in 1780 at Gujranwala; occupied Lahore in 1799 at the age of 19 and made it his capital; conquered Amritsar (in 1802), Attock, Multan, Kashmir, Hazara, Bannu, Derajat and Peshawar; died on the 27th June 1839. His empire at that time included the Punjab and Kashmir and touched the base of the Afghan hills.

Ranjit Singhji, Jam Saheb: (1872-1933) was an Indian prince who earned world fame as a cricketer and was also known as an enlightened ruler.

Rathore, Rajyavardhan Singh: First Indian to win a silver medal in an individual game in Olympics. He won the medal in shooting double trap event of Athens 2004 Olympics.

Razia Begum: daughter of Altmash; she was the first and the only Muslim lady who ever sat on the throne of Delhi.

Ripon, Lord: Governor-General of India (1880-84), famous for Repeal of Vernacular Press Act; the first Census of India in 1881 was taken in his time; Factory Act; policy of free trade. He also pioneered the Panchayati Raj and introduced local self-government.

Rishabha: is supposed to be the mythical founder of Jainism.

Rontgen, W. Konrad: (1845-1923) German physicist. He was awarded the first Nobel Prize in 1901 for his discovery of X-rays.

Roosevelt Franklin D. (1882-1945): was the 32nd President of the USA. He was a great American statesman who served as President from 1933 till his death, being the first President to be elected for more than two terms. His war time meetings with Churchill and Stalin, and his energetic prosecution of the Second World War were considered as the most important features of his foreign policy.

Rousseau: (1712-78) famous for his two remarkable works Confessions and Le Contrat Social which gave French a new field of thought and laid down principles of government and conduct which bore fruit in the French Revolution.

Roy, M.N.: was leader of the Indian communists until India’s independence in 1947. He played a notable role in the world communist movement. After India achieved independence, Roy abandoned communism and became founder of radical humanism, a mixture of socialist and liberal humanitarian ideas.

Roy, Raja Ram Mohan: (1774-1833) He was one of the greatest social reformers that India has produced. He was instrumental in eradicating social evils like Sati, Purdah and child marriage from the Indian soil. He advocated widow re-marriage and stood for women’s education. He was a profound scholar of Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit. He was also the founder of Brahmo Samaj. He is called the first modern Indian.

Russel, Bertrand: A great English philosopher and mathematician. He won Nobel Prize in literature in 1950.

Samudragupta: (330-375) son and successor of Chandra Gupta I; one of the most powerful and the ablest of the Hindu kings; a great military genius, a great scholar, poet and musician; known as the Indian Napoleon on account of his great conquests.

Sapru, Sir Tej Bahadur: He was an eminent jurist and scholar. He was a member of the Imperial Legislative Council from 1916 to 1920. For three years thereafter he was the Law member of the Viceroy’s Council. He attended all the three Round Table Conferences under the British rule. He was mainly responsible for bringing about the Gandhi-Irwin Pact (1931) and the Poona Pact (1932) which led to the modification of the Communal Award.

Sasanka: (619-637) was the king of Gauda in West Bengal.

Satyarthi, Kailash: He is a children’s rights activist, active in the Indian movement against child labour since the 1990s. He won the 2014 Noble Peace prize jointly with Malala Yousafzai of Pakistan.

Savarkar, V.D.: was an ardent Indian nationalist who was in the front ranks of the freedom fighters in the twenties. He was sentenced by the British to transportation for life for his part in a conspiracy case. He remained President of the Hindu Mahasabha for a long time. He wrote an account of the happenings of 1857 under the title Indian War of Independence.

Savitskaya, Svetlana: First woman to walk in space; on 25 July 1984.

Shah Jahan: (1627-58) the Mughal Emperor. His period is described as the golden age of the Mughals. He built Rauza Taj Mahal at Agra in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Lal Qila and Jama Masjid in Delhi were also built in his time.

Sen, Sushmita: First Indian to win Miss Universe title (in 1994).

Shah Nawaz Khan: was associated with the Azad Hind Fauj organised by Subhash Chandra Bose in Singapore in 1943.

Shambaji: was successor of Shivaji.

Shakespeare: (1564-1616) England’s greatest poet and dramatist. He was born at Stratford-on-Avon. He was son of a tradesman of that town. He married Anne Hathaway, who was eight years his senior. He first appeared before the public as a poet in 1593 with his Venus and Adonis.

Shankaracharya: (born 788) was a zealous preacher of Hinduism; a great scholar and philosopher. He uprooted Buddhism and Jainism.

Sharma, Sqn Ldr Rakesh: First Indian to enter outer space on 3 April 1984.

Shastri, Lal Bahadur: Prime Minister of India after Nehru; well-known as ‘Man of Peace’. His greatest achievement was Indo-Pak accord at Tashkent meet in January ’66. The slogan Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan was given by him.

Sher Afghan: was the first husband of Nur Jahan (originally known as Mihir-ul-nisa) whom Jahangir married in 1611.

Sher Shah Suri: Muslim king who reigned during 1540-1545. He was the first Muslim king who paid special attention to administration and reforms. Grand Trunk Road was built in his time. He is known for many reforms in works of public utility and in land revenue. He introduced Kabuliyat and Patta for the purpose of collection of revenues.

Shivaji: son of Shahji Bhonsla, born in 1627; was a brave general, military genius and capable administrator. He was the last great Hindu king who partly succeeded in establishing ‘Hindu Swaraj’. He fought successfully many battles against Aurangzeb’s army and was instrumental in shattering the structure of Mughal Empire in India.

Shri Narayana Guru: was a great social reformer, saint and philosopher of Kerala who has a place next to Adi Sankara. He flourished in the first half of the twentieth century.

Shuja-ud-daulah: (1754-75) was an important figure in the history of northern India. He played a very important role in the Battle of Buxar (1764).

Shyamji Krishna Varma: is known to have made the first organised attempt to establish a centre for training, propaganda and political action for India’s deliverance from British oppression. He established the Home Rule Society in 1905 and then opened a centre for study and propaganda in London, called the India House.

Sikander Lodi: was one of the rulers of the Delhi Sultanate who moved the capital from Delhi to a new town which later came to be known as Agra.

Simuka: was the founder of Satavahana dynasty. He is said to have destroyed the power of the Kanvas and the remnants of the Sungas.

Singh, Dr Manmohan: First Sikh to become the Prime Minister of India.

Slocum, S.H.: He designed the Bhakra Dam, one of the highest straight gravity dams in the world.

Socrates: (469-399 BC) Greek philosopher and teacher who exhorted the people on public questions and conduct of life. He was charged with impiety and sentenced to death. He had to drink poison which he did calmly and ended his life.

Solomon: was king of Israel; reputed for exceptional wisdom. He lived from 1033 BC to 931 BC. Credited with having written the well-known ‘Song of Solomon’.

Sorabji, Cornelia: first woman to practice law in India. Born on 15 November 1866, in Nashik, Sorabji was a pioneer who helped open up higher education as well as the legal profession to women. She was the first woman permitted to attend Bombay University, where she excelled. She then went on to become the first Indian woman to study law at Oxford University in 1892.

Stalin: (1879-1953) Soviet statesman. He was leader of the Russian people for nearly thirty years. He assumed military leadership against the German invasion, June 1941. After his death, he was severely criticised by the Russian leaders.

Subuktigin: was the first Turkish invader of India.

Subulakshmi, M.S.: Doyen of Carnatic music.

Sun Yat Sen: the founder and the first President of the Chinese Republic, 1912. In 1905, founded the China Revolutionary League in Europe and Japan and played a prominent part in the 1911 revolution.

Surendra Sahi: was the prince of Sambalpur (Orissa) who led a number of anti-British revolts in 1857. He was held prisoner in the Hazaribagh jail but was rescued by the rebellious sepoys who challenged the authority of the British government. It was not till 1862 that Surendra Sahi surrendered and was deported.

Susruta: (350) is associated with the city of Banaras (Varanasi). He is the author of a work on medicine which is rather a treatise on surgery (hernia, cataract, plastic surgery etc). There is also a small section on interpretation of dreams for diagnosis.

Syed Ahmed, Sir: (1817-1898) an educationist and reformer of the Muslim community in India. He established the M.A.O. College at Aligarh in 1875 which later became Aligarh Muslim University.

Tagore, Rabindranath: Known as Gurudev, was great Indian poet, novelist, philosopher and thinker. Awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. Works: Gitanjali; The Crescent Moon; Fruit Gathering; Gora; The Wreck; Gardener; Sadhana; Mashi; The Post Office (Dakghar); Hungry Stones. He renounced his Knighthood as a protest against the Jallianwala Bagh Tragedy of 1919.

Tansen: great exponent of Indian classical music. He was one of the Nau Rattans in the Court of Akbar.

Tantya Tope: the brave Commander of Nana Sahib’s forces during the first War of Indian Independence, 1857. He was one of the heroes of this war.

Tara Bai: was the thirteen-year-old widow of Jankoji Scindia who had died without a male heir in February 1843. She resisted the attempts of Lord Ellenborough to annex Gwalior.

Tata, Jamshedji: (1813-1904) Indian industrialist, founder of the Tata Iron and Steel Company, one of the largest integrated steel works in the world. He also founded the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore and built the Taj hotel in Bombay. He was a man of high social ideals and was a pioneer in his attitude to labour. He was a great philanthropist and donated a large proportion of his firm’s profits to works of social welfare.

Tayabji, Badurudin: He was the first President of the Indian National Congress, elected in 1887 at the Madras session.

Tegh Bahadur, Guru: son of Hargobind whose tercentenary of martyrdom was celebrated throughout the country on the 7 December 1975, was the ninth Guru of the Sikhs. He was ordered by Emperor Aurangzeb to embrace Islam; he refused and was executed.

Tennyson, Alfred Lord: (1802-92) He was England’s Poet Laureate from 1850 till his death. Author of In Memoriam, a poem of great beauty and depth of thought.

Tereshkova, Valentina: First woman to go in space on 16 June 1963.

Thyagaraja: South India’s best-known and best-loved musician (17671847). His mother tongue was Tamil but he composed his songs in Telugu.

Tilak, Bal Gangadhar (Lokmanya): ‘Father of the Indian Unrest’—a great political leader and profound religious scholar; author of Gita Rahasya—a commentary on the Bhagwat Gita, founded the Home Rule League in 1916. He was the first Indian to demand freedom as his birthright. He was called as extremist. He started the magazine Kesari.

Timur: born in 1335. Head of the Chughtai Turks. He was a masterful warrior and a butcher, notorious for sack of Delhi (indiscriminate massacre and plunder) during his invasion of India in 1398.

Tipu Sultan: Raja of Mysore. He had his capital at Sringapatnam. He died fighting the British in the fourth Mysore war in 1799. This was the real beginning of British territorial dominion in South India.

Todar Mal: One of the Nau Rattans and Revenue Minister in the Court of Akbar. Famous for reforms in Land Revenue Administration.

Tolstoy, Leo: was a great Russian writer. Mahatma Gandhi was greatly influenced by his works.

Trotsky: Russian revolutionary; one of the leaders of Bolshevist revolution; assassinated in exile in Mexico.

Tulsi Dass: a great Hindu religious preacher. Author of famous Ram CharitManas describing the life story and achievements of Lord Rama. He composed it during the reign of Akbar.

Udham Singh: was the person who went to England and shot General O’Dyer dead to avenge the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Vaghbhata: is regarded as unrivalled in the knowledge of the basic principles of Ayurveda.

Vajpayee, Atal Behari: Former Prime Minister of India. Statesman, gracious, charming, witty, great repartee are the kind of adjectives that come to mind immediately while talking about him. He is best known for the Pokhran blast that catapulted India to the nuclear-haves club, his peace efforts with Pakistan and his famous raj-dharam comment after the Gujarat riots. He is also termed as India’s most instinctive reformer. He was conferred the Bharat Ratna in 2014.

Varahmihira: (505-587 AD) was a distinguished Indian astronomer, mathemati-cian and philosopher. He was one of the nine gems of the court of king Vikramaditya.

Vasco da Gama: a Portuguese sailor who, in 1498, rounded the Cape of Good Hope and succeeded in reaching the port of Calicut (now Kazikhode) on 20 May 1498.

Vatsyayana: He is the author of Kamasutra.

Vera Anstey: His writings refuted the charges of de-industrialisation and the growth of poverty of India under the British rule.

Victoria, Queen: British Queen who was appointed Empress of India in the year 1877.

Vijnanesvara: was a jurist. He wrote at the court of the Chalukya king Vikramaditya-VI. Mitakshara, a commentary on Hindu law is written by him.

Vikramaditya, Chandragupta II: a great ruler of Northern India during 375-413 AD. His period is called the golden period of the Hindus. He was a liberal patron of Art and Literature. Fa-hein, a Chinese pilgrim, visited India during his reign.

Vidyasagar, Ishwar Chander: (1820-1891) was more an educationist than a religious reformer. He was a profound Sanskrit scholar who became a professor in the Sanskrit College, Calcutta in 1850, and a year later, Principal. He served also as a Special Inspector of Schools. He resigned from Government service in 1858, but continued to advise informally the Government on education matters. As a result of unremitting labour and strenuous agitation, Vidyasagar succeeded in inducing the Government to pass a measure in 1856 legalising the remarriage of Hindu widows.

Visvesvarayya, M.: (1861-1962) He was a versatile genius. He was a great engineer, statesman and administrator. Builder of modern Mysore, he was the architect of many of the modern irrigation and power projects in India.

Vivekananda: (1863-1902) a great Hindu saint and religious leader; founder of the Ramakrishna Mission. He was born in Calcutta on 12 January 1863, and his original name was Narindranath Datta. He led the Vedanta movement. His message influenced many of India’s leaders in the national awakening in the 20th century. He asked his countrymen to cultivate faith in themselves. He died on January 4, 1902, at the age of 39.

Voltaire: (1694-1778) one of the greatest of French philosophers and writers. Author of Essays on the Morals; Spirit of Nations.

Yule George: First English President of the Indian National Congress in 1888.

Walpole, Robert: (1676-1745) was the first Prime Minister of England. He was a great 18th century Whig statesman who sat in the House of Commons for over forty years. He was Prime Minister of Britain for a record period of 21 years.

Warren Hastings: He was the first Governor-General (1774-85) in India during the British reign. His period is known for the Regulating Act, 1774; first Marhatta War (1775-82) and Pitt’s India Act, 1784, to improve the Indian administration.

Washington, George: soldier statesman and the first President of the Republic of USA elected in 1789. He was also Commander-in-Chief of the American Army during the War of Independence (1775-83).

Wellington, Duke of: (1769-1852) was the most famous British General of the 19th century. He led the campaign against Napoleon’s army and defeated him at Waterloo. He was Prime Minister of Britain from 1828 to 1830 and from 1842 till his death was Commander-in-Chief.

Zia-ud-din Barni: His historical works give the source material of the Tughlaq dynasty.

Zoroaster: Persian prophet; lived about the seventh century BC The Parsis of India are his followers.